The Misadventures of a curious Hunter
by CrazyChibiSama
Summary: A Hunter follows the Survivors and gets into some rather stupid situations, and learns a lot about how hard it is to be human. Chapter 43... the road ahead.
1. Doors

Chapter 1: In which the Hunter learns how to open a door and use a flashlight.

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead. The Idea though, is mine. I really need to stop watching movies while playing Left 4 Dead...It gives you bad ideas.

(Hunter's POV)

I stared at the few remaining humans as they made their way across the street, dodging several of my brothers, including one just like me. I didn't relate to them very much though. Watching the remaining humans recently became a sort of game for me, I had no desire to leap after them while screaming, because that would involve me getting hurt, even though I don't feel pain too much. I didn't know why, but following them was more interesting than trying to kill them.

They made it across the street, even though one of my largest brothers was chasing them. He failed to catch them as they paused outside of the building with the darker skinned male cheering for some reason. The elderly male told him something that made him quiet down and the group began to head inside. Waiting until they had made it inside completely, I leapt across the roof and followed them through the open door.

They killed several of my lesser brothers as they headed for a door leading to a bright room. Realizing I would lose them, and against my better instincts, I made it into the room before they did and hid behind several large objects. They were indeed some strange humans. The lighter skinned male was always boasting about how many of my lesser brothers he had killed while the only female sighed in annoyance. The dark skinned one was always looking around, I will have to be wary of him, while the eldest one sat cleaning the object that had killed many of my fellow brothers.

My stomach protested its emptiness as I fought the urge to pounce. Watching these humans took my thoughts off of killing as they began to speak quietly to each other, in a language I had long since forgotten. If I was found now, I would surely be on the wrong end of that killing object and be killed.

Again.

The entry door was barricaded by large objects; there was no escape for me now. Watching them eat made me even hungrier, If I did not eat soon, I would be dead for I would surely pounce on someone. After they had finished eating, they began to lie still, sleeping. The instinct to kill began to fill my every thought; I had to eat. Now. Creeping over to the place where they had been eating, I checked to see if they had left anything. Nothing.

I glared at the humans, growling, as I looked for something to eat that didn't have a pulse. Just then, my keen nose picked up something edible. It was cleverly hidden under dark skinned one's sleeping bag. I reached over to him and eased my hands under the bag, finally finding a noisy object. Being careful to not wake any of the humans, I pried my prize out from under him and scampered back to my hiding place.

Safely back in my hiding spot, I uncurled my claws to reveal a colored bar wrapped in some kind of material. I managed to open the material with out making much noise, and then stared at the object in my palm. Was it food? What was it? It smelled like something I could eat, so it must be something I could eat. At least that's what I thought before cramming it into my mouth and barely chewing before swallowing.

AAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIEEEEE! THE TASTE! NOT GOOD! NOT GOOD! Whatever I had just put in my mouth was too sweet! The taste forced me to gag as I rolled about on the floor, clutching my throat. I knocked over a large object which crashed to the ground. Recoiling, I crawled under the large object I had been hiding behind and lay still. All of the humans began to stir, the elderly one coming close to inspect the object I had knocked over.

Satisfied that it was just an accident, he turned back to the group and told them "False alarm." before preparing to leave.

The dark one snapped at the group." All right! Which one of you ate the last Twinkie?! I was saving that!" The female sighed again, brushing some of her hair away from her face before picking up her weapon again. The lighter one called them over to the door where they could leave, the elderly one putting his hand on the round part of the door, twisting, and pushing the door open. All of them left the room and closed the door behind them loudly, shouting all the way and I could hear the noises that their weapons made.

I had memorized their scents, so finding them wouldn't be much of a problem, but this door... well... It would require some work.

Remembering what the elderly one did, I reached out and put my hand on the round part of the door, clasped it, and turned it the same way. The door opened! I should remember how to do that, it would be very useful. Feeling pleased with myself, I dashed after the fading scent, I don't want to lose the only source of entertainment around here. I decided to follow these humans as far as I possibly could, to see how this goes.

But I will avoid any little colored bars in noisy material.

-- Day 2--

I had become accustomed to staying several feet out of sight from the humans as I followed them into their next safe house. I darted ahead of them into the room before they did and found a new hiding place and settled in. They all filed in, barricading the door just as tightly as they did the first time. They barricaded it well so they wouldn't have to worry about any of the lesser ones getting in. I would only hope that my largest brother wasn't headed our way; These humans were too fun to watch and I didn't want them dying anytime soon.

The elderly one, whom the others called "Bill" came very close to my hiding spot and I tensed, eyes alert and legs ready to spring at any chance of escape. He paused before reaching me, and instead turned when he heard the call of the dark skinned one, called "Louis."

" Hey man, Check it out!"he called as he held up a frozen object. " Hamburgers! I bet we can cook them if we get a fire started!" The other man, "Francis" and the female, "Zoey," all voiced an agreement as they got to work. They set up an area and set it on fire(I hate fire!) and set up a spot for the frozen blocks to sit upon, not too close to the fire. To my surprise, the blocks began to melt, and the smell of the food inside made my mouth water. After eating, they began to talk once more and then lay still again.

Curiosity (and hunger) getting the better of me, I approached the now-dead flames as I made sure that they were all asleep. They had left a few of the "hamburgers" on the rack! Grabbing them, I shoved them into my mouth and gorged myself. Wasn't what my instincts desired, but it was certainly enough to keep me quiet. And they tasted quite good. They had left a lot on the rack, so I ate all of them and crawled back to my spot.

On the way, I stumbled across a weird tube. Wasn't like anything I've ever seen before, it was large at one end and small on the other. It was attached to Bill's protective clothing, but that was easily removed with a gentle swipe of the claws that my kind are proud of. Holding the tube in my claws, I looked at both ends and ran my fingers along the edges. Chancing upon a mechanism of some kind, I pushed against it, with the side that reflected me pointing at me.

My eyes!! This thing blinded me! Shaking my head furiously to clear the light in my eyes as I put the tube that had angered me so next to Bill again. Thankfully, in my haste to get rid of it, I got rid of the light somehow. Still partially blinded, I located my hiding place again and made sure I was well hidden before easing myself into a peaceful slumber.

--

(survivors, out of POV)

Bill glared at the others once they were all awake. " Who's been messing with my flashlight?!" Francis shook his head. " Don't go hallucinating on us now, old man." Bill brought up his hand in a rude gesture. Zoey pointed at the ground. " Look, your flashlight just fell off. The material holding it must have been loosened when that Hunter pounced you yesterday. We're just lucky it fell off in here and not in the street somewhere.

Louis gasped when he saw the rack. " All of the hamburgers that were left over! They- They're gone!" All of them turned to look at the rack. " Wow, you're right." agreed Zoey. Francis's face fell. " There goes breakfast. Where did it go? Not like it grew feet and walked outta here." Zoey rolled her eyes.

"No sense worrying about it right now, we have to keep moving."

--

(Hunter POV)

When the noises of movement reached my ears, I remained still and quiet so that I wouldn't be found. Once they were gone, I came out of my hiding place. Making my way to the door, I tripped over the tube again. One of them must have dropped it. Without it, they can't see in the dark like I can. I don't know why I wanted to help them, It just seemed... natural.

I picked up the tube and slid it into the pocket of the clothing that my kind wear and opened the door. A useful ability indeed. I raced after the scent and leaped into a hole in the ground after them. Only when I had almost caught up to them did I realize: How was I going to return it? I couldn't just walk over to them, they'd kill me!

While trying to make up some kind of plan, I absentmindedly took the tube out of my pocket. I turned it on and off while trying to think. Moving it around, I made a slight game out of shining the light onto objects and moving it. Left, right, left, right, up, down, and through the door...

"Screeeeeeeee!" my fooling around with the tube had startled one of my sisters! She hurtled at me with the same speed of one like my own and chased me. In my haste to escape my angered sister, I realized that upon entering the room, I failed to check around for any of my kind. Cursing my own stupidity, I ran out into the open street, leaping over dead lesser and even one of my own.

How far is she gonna follow me?!

--

(Survivors, out of POV)

Bill stopped to light a cigarette as Francis cleaned the remaining Boomer vomit off of himself. Zoey looked around and felt in her pockets. " Has anyone seen my flashlight?" Louis helped her look around the area a bit. "Nope, not here. You must have dropped it when we left the safe house. We can always get another one, not like there's anyone around to say no."

"Screeeeeeeee!" all heads snapped up as the Witch's screaming could be heard. Was there another survivor? All of them exited the alleyway and stood staring as a Hunter, running like mad, tore across the street, a Witch not too far behind him. Francis, not wanting to leave any zombie un-dead, fired on the Witch as the others joined in, not quite knowing what to make of the sight at hand.

The Witch was subdued, and as her remains fell to the ground, Bill turned to go find the Hunter, who had long since left.

"Now that was weird."

Louis looked around. " Yeah, that was really weird. Never seen a Witch chase anything except us."

Francis chuckled. " Maybe that Hunter startled her somehow?"

Bill whirled to look at him. "With what? A hug?"

Zoey laughed at her companions as she walked towards one of the buildings. " Let's laugh about that later, for now, let's get on that roof so we can get a better view."

Once on the roof, the Horde somehow climbed up there as well and the fight was on. Zoey was carried off by a Smoker while a Boomer vomited on Louis. Francis stayed to help Louis fight the growing Horde while Bill ran to help Zoey.

--

(Hunter POV)

I saw the commotion on the roof. I had been hiding after my sister had chased me all over the street but when her screams stopped, I knew it was safe to stop running. Jumping onto the roof myself, I saw one of my brothers, who usually just shoots his tongue out, snag Zoey and carry her further away from the group. The hell he will!

Leaping over a fragile window, I put my claws into his tongue, severing it. I might have picked a better time to do that though, she fell into the window and to the ground below. I am so stupid. Throwing the "Smoker" as they called him off the roof, I leaped into the hole in the window. Wasn't that far of a fall to the floor, she wasn't dead. Reaching her, I stopped. Now what?

--

(Zoey's POV)

Stupid Smoker! When I get out of this hole I'm going to give each and every one of them what's coming to them. But first, smack Bill for shooting it while I was on a window. Clearing away the shards, I searched for my flashlight but realized, duh, I don't have it. My only hope now was that Bill and the others knew how to open the door from the other side. It was locked on my side. A low growl made me stiffen. Hunter.

They can see better than we can in the dark. Please be outside, please be outside. A Hunter came into my field of vision. Crap. I'm gonna die.

--

(Hunter POV)

I stood before her as I watched her ease backwards. Her weapon lay too far for her to reach and try to hurt me, so I stood with some confidence. I reached into my pocket and took out the tube. She flinched at my actions, but I rolled it to her feet. She took the tube, dumbfounded, and stood up. I watched carefully as she retrieved her weapon before grabbing her and leaping back out of the window. Her screams hurt my ears, but my intent was to return her to her group before she shot me.

Dropping her gently onto the roof, I backed away cautiously as she stared at me with disbelief. Keeping her eye on me, she yelled to her comrades below, who were trying to force the door open. "Guys! I'm up here!" They made their way back onto the roof while I tried to get off it. Fail. Francis pointed his weapon at me. " Zoey! A Hunter!" He was quick, but I was quicker.

Leaping off the roof, I avoided several shots as I took cover under the machinery below. Mission accomplished.

--

(Survivors, out of POV)

Louis and Bill wheezed as they managed to catch up to Francis, who was yelling at Zoey. " Why didn't you shoot it?! That Hunter was in point blank range!" Zoey stared at the spot where the Hunter vanished. " He brought me my flashlight."

End Chapter 1

Ahh, finally done. Soda induced typing brought about this. Take it as HunterXZoey if you want, I don't care. Just please Rewiew and Tell me what you think at least. NO FLAMES PLEASE!


	2. Closets

Chapter 2: In which the Hunter learns how to operate a Fire Extinguisher and learns about Closets.

Disclaimer: If I owned Left 4 Dead, I wouldn't be here writing this. I'd be making the movie.

A/N: Thank you to all the reviewers who posted! Unfortunately, there is a tad more drama than humor in this chapter because I had this chapter written a long time ago, when Left 4 Dead had just barely came out. So sorry, don't flame me, 'cause I'll just wind up in a closet. Again. This one is a little shorter than the first chapter, so sorry....

--Day 3--

(Hunter POV)

I now had to be very careful when following the group since they had seen me, and shot at me, when I returned the tube to Zoey. They huddled very closely to each other to insure safety in the event of a large attack. Whenever a Smoker came along, it was quickly killed so it couldn't forcibly split up the group and cause problems.

They still held onto the idea that their places of temporary rest were still safe, so I was still free to enter the room ahead of them and watch them without being detected. This time, I made myself comfortable in a large pile of blankets. The pile was so large that they took a few of the blankets and never even saw a glimpse of me.

Again they made a fire, and again they began to converse, their words making little sense to me. I had been hearing them talk for so long that I understood some of the words, but got a headache whenever I tried to understand them any further. This time, Francis brought out a small object and held it up to the others, who lit up when they saw it.

"All right who wants to play some cards?" he asked.

Cards? What are those again? Agh, my headache's coming back...

After the throbbing stopped, I watched Francis give so many cards to each person. It looked simple; each person had so many cards and tried to trick the others into thinking something else before showing their cards. A short amount of time had passed before they started tossing objects into a pile, who ever had the best cards got the pile.

"All right, Old Man, I'll raise you your pistol and toss in a shotgun as well," sneered Francis.

Bill eyed him warily. "Son, don't go betting everything. You might just lose."

Betting? Is trading weapons and other objects by cards betting?

Francis shifted the cards in his hand. "The only way I'll lose is to a Tank, Bill."

Louis remained silent, I almost thought he was asleep until he threw some objects in the pile as well. " I'll add some extra ammo and a Med Pack too."

Bill and Francis both whistled, saying things like " Feeling lucky, Louis?" and " You must be confident." but I could tell in his voice, that he was nervous. Zoey, quiet as well, stared holes into her cards before tossing a few objects into the pile.

Bill smiled. " All right. Time to show what you got!" All of the players showed their cards except for Zoey.

Francis grinned while Louis moaned and Bill snapped in disgust. He then turned to Zoey, who looked confused, " Are you too embarrassed to show your cards, Zoey?" Zoey scratched her head and then put her cards on the ground.

"I forgot, what do four aces mean again?" she asked.

Francis's jaw dropped at the same time his cards did while the other two fell over with laughter. Zoey helped herself to the pile as I yawned quietly and curled up under the warm blankets, trying to find a reason as to why 'four aces' was enough to make Francis mad and Louis and Bill laugh.

--

A really, really loud noise woke me up as screams and the sounds of fighting reached my ears and startled me into leaping out of the blankets. I stood up fully, realized what I was doing, and ducked back under the blankets. Fortunately, the others were far too busy fighting to notice that I was there. I risked taking another look to see what they were fighting so furiously.

A roar jolted me out of the blankets before I could even look. My largest brother, what Francis called " The Tank." Uh-oh.

Not wanting to stick around for any kind of confrontation between any of the fighters, I leapt over the remains of the mangled door and dashed for safety. A yell from the room had me looking back to find that the Tank had pinned Bill up against on of the corners and was moving in for the kill. Having been a loner for quite some time, I knew that if a group who was strong together were cut by just one, their chances of survival/victory dropped.

I ran back into the room, fully intent on deterring the Tank long enough for Bill to get free. However, I knew that if I just lunged at the Tank with no plan or survival strategy, I would get torn to bits or tossed. I then saw an object hanging on the wall. It was a much larger tube than the one that blinded me a day ago, with a different color and a hose at on end. It took no effort to smash the protective window covering it and I removed the object from the case.

I had every intent of throwing it at the Tank's head and providing a momentary distraction but while lifting it over my head, I had brought my hand down on one of the parts, removing it completely from the large tube. While trying to retrieve it as quickly as I could, because I could hear the shouts of the others as they tried to free Bill, I moved my hand to another part of the tube and pressed down.

A steady stream of liquid sprayed from the hose, causing it to fly everywhere, covering everything in the liquid, including my face. I couldn't see anything until I had cleaned my face off and the liquid had turned into a kind of foam at that time.

If I can't see anything through this liquid, Then neither can the Tank!

Through a bit of practice, I found that I could aim the path of the liquid so I took the opportunity to spray the liquid onto his eyes. It worked! My victory was very short; Francis shouted some kind of warning and threw a flaming object into the room. The flames spread across the room, engulfing the Tank and burning some of my upper body clothing.

I beat out the flames and grabbed Bill, who was choking on the smoke in the room, and dodged around the Tank and escaped into the cool hallway. I ran several feet, dragging Bill behind me before locating a room that only had one door. I threw him in there and closed the door and shoved an heavy object in front of it, preventing Bill from leaving. (A/N: Ha Ha! Now we know how people wind up in closets! *opens another soda*)

Now to lose the Tank...

Very angry that he had lost his prey, the Tank chased me through the hallway, still burning. He chased me past the rest of the group, who stood and stared as I ran past, and howled when I jumped out of a window and hung for dear life onto a pipe above, sending him plummeting outside of the building three floors. He hit the ground and I felt the building tremble from the impact. The flames finally put out, he lumbered around the building, trying to find another entrance to get at the people inside.

I decided to ignore the Tank for now and crawled back into the window, ready to find the group and lead them to Bill. Somehow. Zoey ran back and forth, calling for Bill, while Louis and Francis shouted, Francis yelling words that made my ears burn just hearing them, trying to get an answer from their missing comrade. They then gathered their gear and set out to look for him.

Going the wrong way.

_No! Wrong way! Bill will never get out of that room if you go that way! I should know, I put him in there!_

I quickly tried to think of any way to lead them towards Bill without getting shot while I watched Francis swing his shoulder bag to his other shoulder. Got it!

I lunged from my hiding place onto Francis, knocking him to the ground. Before Zoey or Louis had even a chance to react, I had ripped off Francis's shoulder bag and bounded away in the right direction, with the bag firmly clenched in my teeth. Francis pulled himself up from the ground, realized what I did, and gave my ears another torching with his words.

I ran back to where Bill was, only lingering long enough for them to see me and follow me. Francis clearly wanted his bag back, he continued to yell burning words in my direction along with a few shots. I stopped in front of the closet, and hung around long enough for them to catch up and then ducked out of sight. Bill's yells were more than enough to make them stop looking for me and help him.

Zoey and Louis got about removing the large object which I had shoved in front of the door while Francis stood, watching for any signs of movement, uttering words I think were aimed at me. I pulled myself up to a crouch and dropped the bag from my jaws.

Opening it was no easy task, though ripping it to shreds certainly crossed my mind, I gently eased the two clips open and lifted the cover. Once open, I pawed through the contents of the bag.

Weapon, tube, medical thing that I often see them use on their injuries, something wrapped in cloth; Hey! A hamburger! Mine now. Yum. A weird bottle that I also see them use, little thing that makes fire when you open it, and a few sheets of paper held together. What good was the paper?

I took the paper out of the bag and opened it. Why is this thing full of naked females? They don't have any protection from any sort of temperature! Ignoring the heat coming off of my face, I shoved the papers back into the bag and closed it again like I had never taken it.

Zoey and Louis had freed Bill and were welcoming him with open arms while Francis continuing to shout words that still made my ears burn. I crept closer to them and threw the bag with a steady hand and good aim; having the bag land a few feet away from its owner.

Confused, Francis picked up the bag and re-tied the strap before swinging it back onto his shoulder. Satisfied, he motioned to the others that they should keep moving and the others went ahead. Once they were out of sight, he quickly dropped to one knee and shuffled through the bag; breathing a sigh of relief when he found the papers.

"Move it or lose it, Son!" shouted Bill from ahead.

Francis scooped up his bag and raced after them, smiling widely. I noticed that they were headed for another safe location so I got ahead of them again and got comfortable in another pile of blankets.

I love these blankets.

Once inside, they barricaded the door extra tight tonight due to the earlier encounter and sat talking about what had happened. I was starting to become drowsy, but small pieces of the conversation I could hear, like " Loony Hunter," and " That frigging' Hunter took my hamburger!" Hamburger? Where?! Hmm, doesn't look like there are any near. I can't smell any either. Aww.

--

(Survivors, out of POV)

Louis rolled his eyes at the conversation. Zoey, Francis, and Bill were all ranting about a supposed Hunter that had brought a flashlight, locked a closet, stolen and returned a shoulder bag among other things. Personally, he thought that all three of them had been overdosing on painkillers.

" _Hunters aren't exactly bright enough to know how to differentiate between a closed door and an open one.*__1 __Hell, pretty much the only thing they know is how to tell between Infected and Non Infected!"_ he thought.

Zoey crossed her arms. " Crazy incident with Hunter aside, this whole thing is quickly going to hell in a handbag. At least we got rid of the Tank somehow."

--

(Hunter POV)

I opened one eye lazily at her voice. Got rid of the Tank? That's what you think. I know those things all too well. They don't die very easily. The group will probably encounter him again if he didn't manage to find another entrance.

As the talking died down I curled up into a ball, pulling my arms and legs tightly to my chest as I lay still. Since I had begun following the survivors so closely, I had learned how to pattern my sleeping habits close to theirs: go to sleep after they do and try and wake up before they do. Naturally, that meant I would go to sleep when it was really dark outside and be awake when it was just very cloudy out. Originally, I would up all night searching for a meal, not that I ever found anything.

Hopefully the Tank would leave us alone and let us sleep.

End Chapter 2

Sorry about the dig at Francis, Francis fans, I could just see him carrying one of those around for the purpose of "salvaging some of the remains of the people who were lost." Don't flame me to Hell, okay?

Purr... Another chapter done and I don't have writers block! I need a little help though, does anyone know the average size of a hunter in a numerical form, like 5' whatever or something like that? I would really appreciate it. Ciao!

*1 Actual Story: I was playing left 4 dead on Co-Op mode and a Hunter (A.I.) slammed into a door that wasn't open.


	3. Help

OMG~! I got so many reviews! *faints from bliss* I never thought I would get this much attention from just one story, cause my other two stories don't receive much traffic compared to this one. *Fans self* but enough about my fantasies. By popular demand and urging of fellow classmates, I now present the latest chapter of this series.

for anyone following my other story, I will be updating soon.

Author's note: This one will be a little longer than the other two, with a little more blood in this one. Maybe. Little or No humor, depends on how hard you look.

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead, but the Hunter I made is mine. If anyone says otherwise, they will be pounced on by said Hunter.

Chapter 3: In which the Hunter is discovered and helped

--

(Hunter's POV)

Rain. I hate the rain. It takes forever to stop and its always cold outside. It's also too quiet. Everything can be heard, from the moans of a Witch to the breathing of a Tank.

So why am I out in it?!

I wanted to just curl up in a pile of blankets and sleep until the rain had stopped but the survivors, eager to get wherever they were going, left the warm room to walk through the cold rain. The urge to just abandon them for the blankets lingered at the back of my mind constantly, a small doubt which lost against my overwhelming curiosity. Matter of fact, most things lost against my curiosity.

My curiosity probably is going to be the death of me one of these days.

I shuddered and pulled my clothing tighter around me, trying to keep warm as I trudged a short distance away from the survivors. Water dripped onto my face as I breathed in the cool air and started to sniff around my surroundings. Besides the scent of the Survivors, the smell of the lesser drifted about, aimlessly, as if when there wasn't anything living present, they hung around vacantly.

I guess Zoey hates the rain as much as I do; she hid under anything that offered any kind of cover. Not that I was any better. Her wet hair clung to her face as she reloaded her weapon, pausing only briefly to wipe strands from her face. She readied the weapon and fired at the nearest lesser, who's head vanished from the shot. That was a constant reminder of what I'm up against if I was discovered and cornered.

Bill's hat shielded him from the downpour, but only for a little while. The top of his head may have been dry, but it didn't make him any less cranky. Louis repeatedly stopped to try and squeeze some of the water out of his clothes, but eventually he gave up.

Francis was the worst out of the whole group. If his burning words were lights, he could power two of these cities and still have some left over. His vest offered no protection from the temperature and current weather condition, which only made his mood worse. Nothing got near him because he killed any lesser on sight. I had the clothing that my kind, which I just recently learned were called "Hunters," were known for wearing. Didn't mean I was any less miserable though.

Lessers, unaffected by the the rain, charged at the Survivors blindly. But then again, I don't think they're affected by anything anymore. Some of the lesser charged past me, but I killed anything that I could get while still remaining out of sight. They can handle the rest; it was only two or three of them anyways. Sure enough, a few shots rang out and the lesser moaned no more.

A sudden flash of movement had me climbing the roof at almost blinding speed, ready to eliminate whatever was going to try and take a shot at the Survivors below. Nothing bad is going to happen to them on my watch; without them, I wouldn't have anything to do. And no hamburgers. Yup, not gonna happen on my watch.

Screeching my obvious disapproval of the intruder's actions, I reached the roof and plunged my claws into a fleshy form.

Wait. Fleshy?

The infected, a seriously large man of impressive weight that was only matched by a Tank, burst from the impact of my claws and covered me with a horrible smelling, I mean AWFUL, liquid. That stuff was the nastiest thing to ever hit my nose, it was a nightmare beyond belief! And worse, it ruined my clothes! Even if I stood out in the rain for the rest of the day, I wouldn't be able to get all of it out.

Cursing my bad luck, I then remembered about one of my brothers that had the ability to spray said liquid onto his surroundings and/or prey. His body would also spill that liquid when killed. Which attracted Lessers. Which I was covered in.

Today is turning out to be a really bad day....

A swarm of lesser, which had been attacking the Survivors, changed directions and begin climbing onto the roof towards me. One soaking wet battle in the rain later, I rested my head against the wall and gasped for breath, trying to pick out the scent of the Survivors from the scent of blood and the rain.

There had been more Lesser than I thought, and even though I didn't receive any injuries from the fight, I was exhausted. I maybe had enough energy for one sprint and a pounce before I would have to rest for hours if I continued on. My stomach wasn't much help either. I hadn't eaten anything since I stole Francis's hamburger and that was yesterday. I finally caught their scent and followed them slowly to conserve energy.

Several vehicles barred their path to the safe house. Past experiences told me that any of the vehicles could set off an alarm that would bring Lessers flocking to the sound like, well, Lessers. Bill pulled his hat over his face. " Does anyone know which one has the alarm?"

Francis cocked his weapon. " We could always shoot them and find out." he snapped. His mood obviously hasn't improved in the slightest.

They debated on what to do, while I rested nearby. I had a feeling in my gut that they would wind up shooting one of the vehicles, and like night follows the day, an alarm sounded. And once again, like night follows the day, Lesser came running from all directions like a dinner bell had just been rung.

The Lesser overwhelmed them. A Smoker grabbed Louis and dragged him away as another Hunter pounced on Zoey and tore at her clothes. Bill ran to help Zoey while trying to get rid of the Lessers and a Witch that had been behind the vehicle knocked Francis over and clawed at him.*1 I stood up from my hiding place, having made a decision. I would kill all of the infected here. At this moment, I didn't care that I would be killed, it just seemed the right thing to do.

I crouched on the ground, setting out a route to take. Once my route was set, I pounced onto the Smoker, crushing it with impact, reached down and pulled Louis up by his collar. I then left him and grabbed the other Hunter and gouged his eye out before tossing him several feet. Leaving Louis to help Zoey, I killed the remaining Lesser surrounding Bill. I was trying to accomplish this as fast as I could so I could possibly escape.

Snatching Bill's weapon, a shotgun, from his hands, I lunged forward and thrust the weapon against the side of the Witch's head, pushing her off Francis. She focused on me, using her long claws to tear holes in my drenched clothing.

I used the shotgun as a shield, blocking most of the Witch's attacks. She tore at my right shoulder, ripping the fabric and the flesh open. I have to get her closer to me, I wasn't too confident in my ability to use a gun, even though she was extremely close. I drew the gun closer to my chest, leaving my stomach unguarded. I didn't want her to hit my chest because she would knock me over too.

_Closer...Closer..._

She thrust her claws into my stomach, ripping it open. The pain was unbearable, but I had already made my decision long ago. She was right where I wanted her: too close not to miss. I used the shotgun to crush her hand that was closest to me; I had seen Bill do that to many Lesser with that weapon, but to their heads.

Realizing danger, she backed up and I pounced on her, pinning her to the ground. I took the shotgun and shot her in the head, her screams dying in her throat as she fell silent for the final time. I coughed, dropping the shotgun onto the ground. Blood oozed out of my mouth and dripped onto the wet ground. It tastes horrible.

Blood stained my clothing and the ground as I fell to the side of the dead witch, the blood covering her form. The rain fell onto part of my exposed face and hands, chilling them. The Survivors stared at me, afraid to approach. At least all of them made it. Hopefully, they'll make it out alive.

...

_I really, really hate the rain... It's just too cold._

--

(Survivors, Out of POV)

Francis carefully approached the Witch's body, nudging it with his foot. Satisfied that she was dead, he signaled to the others. The rest of the group walked over, footsteps making soft splashes in the puddles of rainwater. He turned to look at the Hunter lying on the ground.

The Hunter that both he, Bill, and Zoey had seen, that had helped them lay on the ground, eyes closed and mouth shut. His blood pooled around him, making nearby puddles crimson. Zoey approached the Hunter carefully, ignoring Louis's whisper of "Leave him alone, Zoey!" and watched the Hunter's chest rise and fall slightly. " He's still breathing."

Bill retrieved his shotgun from near the Witch. " Not for much longer." he said, taking aim. Zoey moved in between Bill and the Hunter. " No. I'm going to help him."

All three men stared at her in shock.

"Are you crazy, Zoey?! That. Is. An. Infected!" shouted Louis. Zoey dropped to one knee and began to try and stop the flow of blood. " I know," she said, struggling. " But I always repay a debt, no matter to who it may be. He saved my life from the smoker and the other Hunter; I'm going to save him now. We all owe him, you, me, Bill, and Francis, we wouldn't have made it if he hadn't helped us." Louis's jaw dropped while Bill and Francis remained silent.

Bill was skeptical. Though the Hunter could have picked better methods of helping them, he knew that in war, sometimes you had to get rough to save another. He also knew that an ally today could be an enemy tomorrow, so he remained skeptical. Zoey finished, brushing her hands off. She had stopped the blood flow, but she needed a place where she could treat him properly without the threat of Infected of any type.

She turned to Francis and stared at him, her eyes pleading to him. He stared back, until he eventually caved in. " All right, but you're in charge of him. And this is only because he saved us. Any other day, I would have shot him regardless." She smiled at him as he knelt down and lifted the Hunter off the ground. He held the Hunter carefully, so that the wounds wouldn't open any further.

"Huh, he doesn't weigh anymore than Zoey does." He commented. A gun click behind him had him hastily adding, " I'm not saying you're fat, Zoey. Besides, Bill and Louis weigh far more than you do."

"You're not exactly a feather!" snapped Bill and Louis in unison, both keeping their distance and their fingers on the trigger. Francis lifted his eyebrows teasingly and Bill made an obscene hand gesture in his direction as Zoey led the way to the safe house.

At the safe house, Zoey grabbed a few blankets and folded them together to make a bed which Francis laid the Hunter on. She then searched about, looking for medical equipment to properly treat the Hunter while Louis barricaded the entrance before joining Bill and Francis, who were sitting about as far as they could possibly get from the Hunter while still being in the safe house.

Zoey came back to the bed with bandages and salves and set them down next to the bed. She then lifted part of the Hunter's sweatshirt to examine his stomach before realizing that she couldn't see the full extent of his injury. She glanced over at Francis. " Can you help me get his sweatshirt off?" she asked sweetly.

Francis threw up his hands. " What am I, the Can Do Man? Fine, but will that sweatshirt even come off?" He grabbed one of the Hunter's arms and Zoey took the other, both lifting the sweatshirt off of the Hunter, revealing his face. Bill dropped his cigarette as Louis gasped. The Hunter, minus the claws, looked completely human.

He had soft brown hair, which covered his face in uncombed patches, like he had just gotten out of bed. His face showed gentle features, his breathing slightly uneven, but he was sleeping peacefully. Zoey looked at Francis with wide eyes, Francis could only shrug in surprise.

Francis half expected the Hunter's face to be covered in welts, like the Smoker and the Boomer, but this Hunter showed no signs of facial distortion. He just guessed that the infection affected some less than others. Certainly provided a decent reason as to why a Hunter would help them out of nowhere.

Zoey had done a good job of stopping the blood flow earlier, but now that she had access to more equipment and wasn't under any kind of pressure, she got to work on bandaging his wounds.

--

(Zoey's POV)

I wrapped the bandages around the Hunter's stomach since that was my first priority; I had attended enough health classes to know to take care of the largest injury first. I ditched all the rest of the classes and now I wish I hadn't.

His shoulder was next, I propped him up against the wall so I could use a fresh roll of bandages from the medical kit. I then lifted his left arm, which had only been nicked by the Witch's claws, and wrapped the remainder around it. I didn't want to try and give him medicine; first off, he wasn't conscious to even take them, and I'm not giving him mouth-to-mouth. Secondly, I wouldn't know how an Infected would react to medicine.

I couldn't help but stare at his face, though I was trying to focus on his injuries. He looked the same age I was, he could have very well have been in college when the infection broke out. He easily could have bested the best-looking guy on our campus and was probably much nicer when it came to personality. After all, he did save us.

Whoa! Hey, What am I thinking?! School doesn't exist anymore and this guy's a hunter! That kind of killed any desire to drag him to a survivor encampment and show him off to any other surviving girls and my thoughts are going again...

Since the time he saved me from the Smoker, I told myself that if I had seen him again, I wouldn't shoot him, but this is a better way to repay my debt. I always pay back a favor, even if it is to an infected.

I finished tightening the bandage around his arm and cleaned myself off. I had stopped most of the bleeding and bandaged the wounds; natural healing abilities should help as well. Not that I knew much of infected anatomy. I straightened my ponytail and went over to where the guys were sitting.

--

(Survivors, Out of POV)

Zoey sat next to Bill and accepted a candy bar that Louis offered to her. She opened the wrapper and tore into the candy bar eagerly, wolfing it down in only a few bites. She crumpled the wrapper and shoved it into her pocket. " Now what are we going to do?"

Louis shifted nervously in his seat." Leave before the Hunter wakes up." Francis rolled his eyes and pointed a the door where they had come in from. " If you want to take on the Horde, be my guest." immediately after Francis spoke, Bill pointed at the exit. " If you want to go out that door, be my guest as well."

A wail came from the other side of the door, echoing in the safe room. Zoey tiptoed to the door and looked out before creeping back to them. " She's on the stairs!" she whispered. Francis went to look as well, coming back with a angry look. " I'm not playing decoy again. One of you guys do it this time."

Bill put out his cigarette. " We're between a rock and a hard place this time, or as they say in the military, this is pretty much FUBAR." All of them nodded in agreement. Zoey stood up and went to check if the Hunter was still asleep. She wanted to wait until he was awake so they could release him but the lingering threat of the Witch was making them all nervous.

Francis groaned. " Horde behind door #1, Witch behind door #2 , unconscious Hunter in the room with us and Zoey insists on caring for him. Can this day get any worse?" Louis glared at him. " You know, saying that usually makes it worse." Bill shared the glare. " If we get attacked by a large horde, I'm shooting you first, Francis."

Zoey rolled her eyes and walked over to the Hunter, who was still sleeping. It had been an hour since she had bandaged his injuries and he was now peacefully settled under a blanket. " You know, we can't keep him, Zoey. Sure he did save us, but what on earth could we feed him and would he be nice or try to pounce?" stated Louis.

Zoey faced him. " He's not a pet, you know. Besides, I'm just going to keep an eye on him until he wakes up and then scare him away, like how animal rescuers keep an animal until it's healthy and then scare it back into the wild." She shifted the blanket to see if the bandages were still secure.

--

(Hunter's POV)

I must have somehow survived the injury from the Witch and would soon be shot by the survivors. That or bleed to death. No finishing shot came though, they must have passed right by me. At least the rain has stopped, but my clothing is probably ruined by now.

Opening my eyes, I squinted from the bright light. A safe room? How did I get here? I sat up slowly, so as not to open my stomach wound. A gasp from next to me had me turning my head to look at Zoey. She backed up cautiously from me, the other three coming over, guns drawn. I looked down and saw that I was not only missing my upper clothing, my stomach had been covered by some kind of cloth.

I stared at Zoey blankly, who approached me carefully and unarmed. She knelt next to me while I stared at the men, waiting for them to lift their guns and finish me off, just like they had every other infected. She touched my arm and I tensed, fearing that she would irritate the wound. The men tensed as well fingers gently resting on the triggers, ready to shoot.

She drew her arm back slightly and then took part of the cloth on my shoulder, which had been coming off, and clasped in place with a piece of metal. I made no effort to jump her; I would be dead faster than I could pounce, I also didn't want to open up my stomach injury. She stared at me, finally saying,

"Yep, You are definitely not like the other Hunters." I'm not like those screaming idiots. I may screech, but that's only when I'm mad.

I was grateful to her, she saved my life like I had saved hers. She must have convinced the others not to shoot me and decided to tend to my injuries. She saved my life in the cold rain. I opened my mouth, testing it. It was dry and rough from lack of use, minus screaming at anything that ticked me off, but I managed to say the words long forgotten to the infected, words that meant so much.

"...Thank you."

--

End Chapter 3

OMFG! The Hunter Spoke! Again, I'd like to thank everyone for the reviews, they really keep me going. I'm currently running a poll about the Hunter on my profile, about whether or not I should give him a name. For those of you who do review, does anyone want to offer some name suggestions? Next chapter, I promise to get back into the Humor as much as I possibly can, but this chapter had to be done. Out of all the survivors, I think Zoey would probably be the most compassionate, while Bill and Francis hold the award for most likely to shoot first, then ask questions. Ciao for now! Review please!

Forgot to add this during first post:

*1 One time while playing, my friend shot a car that had a witch right behind it. He hit the car and the witch and we were pretty much screwed, because the other player couldn't hit an infected unless it walked into the barrel of his gun. I'm a noob, but I'm not THAT bad.

Share your noob or otherwise stories! I could use them in a later chapter with credit given to you!


	4. Heal

Chapter 4: In which the Hunter takes time to heal.

*Giddy* OMG! I love all the reviews that I got, even if some of them killed my mood for writing within two seconds. But neutral/ negative feedback is just how we fanfic writers improve and try and become better. I don't know if this chapter is any better than the others, but I shall try.

For anyone wanting to email me with a funny L4D story or a name option, I have changed my email cause I was getting sick of using my dad's.

Forgot this during first post. " I do not own left 4 dead, but the idea is mine. MINE I TELL YOU!"

Chapter 4:

"NO! No no no no no no NO!" screeched the Hunter as Zoey reached for another bottle, her hands and face soaked from the task she was performing. Despite his hood keeping most of his hair in place, he still needed a bath and she decided to give him one. She squeezed the bottle of shampoo that Louis, at her gentle persuasion, had brought from one of the containers in the room, onto the Hunter's head and began to scrub. Francis had the task of pinning the Hunter's arms and legs to prevent escape/attack and was having a rather good time of it. Louis, still under Zoey's gentle persuasion, was refilling a bucket with water to rinse out the Hunter's hair.

Bill sat in the corner shaking his head. "If I make it out of this hellhole alive, I'll have something interesting to tell where all of the survivors are. Young girl develops motherly instincts and gives a Hunter a bath. Persuades traveling companions with Molotov into helping. Where did she find that damn thing anyways?" he muttered, searching for his lighter. Zoey raised her voice over the agitated cries of a Hunter who got shampoo in his eyes, "Bill, will you go find something for the Hunter to wear? His sweatshirt is stained with blood." Bill raised an eyebrow. "Zoey, we're in a safe house with a Witch on one side of us and a Horde on the other. Just where would you like me to go get something for him to wear?"

"We could always give him Francis's vest and your hat, Bill." Zoey replied sweetly, her voice laced with a possible threat.

"I'll start looking."

Bill got up and started searching around the room as Zoey dumped water onto the Hunter's head, setting off another round of screeches. The Hunter tried desperately to escape the water but failed miserably when Francis grabbed his legs mid-pounce, bringing him back to the ground. Zoey finally finished scrubbing and rinsing out his hair and then sat next to him with a towel and started to dry his hair. The Hunter sat quietly, letting Zoey dry his hair before starting to pull at the bandages on his arm, which was starting to itch. Louis, now free from Zoey's reign, sat a few feet away, trying to get a microwave to work so he could heat up a few things he found in the room.

The microwave gave an approving beep as it hummed to life, eager to serve the person who turned it on. Louis searched one of the containers scattered about the room and then tossed a microwaveable hamburger into it and set the timer. When the timer had counted down and gave a beep, Louis took the hamburger out and put it on a bun, unaware of the Hunter staring at him, or more exactly, the food. Louis set down the bun on a plate and then turned back to the microwave and threw in another hamburger and set the timer. When Zoey and Francis started to snicker behind him, he whirled around to find the Hunter wolfing down the hamburger. "Hey! That was mine, you greedy Hunter!" shouted Louis, pointing at the now empty plate.

The Hunter finished the hamburger and then stared at Louis innocently, as if asking for another. Louis glared at him as Bill came back over to them, puffing away on his cigarette. He looked at the Hunter who was still staring innocently, then at Louis, who was hopping mad, and then finally at Zoey and Francis who shrugged their shoulders while smiling. "What just happened here?" he finally asked. Zoey smiled. "I don't think the Hunter wants to eat any of us. He looks like he wants the hamburgers more than anything else."

The Hunter continued to stare at Louis and the microwave, which just beeped to let them know that the hamburger was done. With the stealth of a Hunter, Louis opened the microwave, keeping his back to the microwave to prevent the Hunter from seeing what's inside. The Hunter, smelling the food but not seeing it, moved from a sitting position to a crouched position, making Louis freeze. Bill sat next to Francis on a nearby chair. "Talk about a standoff from hell." Both combatants stared at each other, trying to stare the other one down while carefully moving, the Hunter towards Louis and Louis towards the wall. Louis eventually reached the wall and bumped up against it as the Hunter came closer.

"All right, that's enough you two." Zoey remarked, taking the hamburger off of the plate and walking away, leaving the two to whine in her direction. She sat next to Bill and took a bite of the hamburger, making Louis grumble and unwrap another hamburger to put in the microwave. Bill held up a white shirt. "Isn't a sweatshirt, but it'll have to do. It's the only thing I could find in here that wasn't torn to pieces. We might find him another sweatshirt when we leave. For now, it's better than nothing." Zoey finished her hamburger and took the shirt as the microwave beeped again.

Just as the Hunter crouched to pounce on the microwave, she pulled the shirt over his head, blinding him and making him crash to the ground as Louis successfully retrieved his food. She managed to get the shirt completely on him and tug his arms through and before standing back to appraise her work. The Hunter, confused, examined his shirt and started to tug on it. She then took a comb out of her pocket and then tried to comb his hair. She got through most of it, but had to have Bill help her when she reached the tangled part of his hair. Bill held the Hunter down as she tried to get through the matted mess, him screeching loudly whenever it started to hurt.

Francis watched the show, having gotten a hamburger after Louis did, sitting so many feet away as the scene in front of them played out like an old horror movie. Zoey eventually got through his hair and was coaxing the agitated Hunter while brushing out the remainder of it, being extra careful around the crown of his head. Bill, having accomplished what Zoey asked him to help with, helped himself to some of the canned goods and a hamburger of his own while Zoey worked.

"I now declare this Hunter presentable!" she announced, feeling pleased with herself as she put away the cob and the brush. The Hunter tugged at the shirt as Bill put out his cigarette in a nearby ashtray. "That's great Zoey; you made the Hunter look nice. Do you mind putting away the Molotov before it turns us all into cigarettes?" he said. Zoey smiled as she took the Molotov from its hidden location. "Guess I don't need this anymore. I got what I wanted." she sang as she tossed the Molotov through the bars of the door where the Horde had been relentlessly trying to get in.

The flames licked at the door as the screams of the burning infected fell on Zoey's deaf ears. The orange glow of the fire reflected off of the terrified expressions of the rest of the group, including the Hunter. Francis sighed. "Wouldn't it have been a brighter idea to toss it at the Witch?" Louis nodded in agreement. Bill looked at the other door. "The Crying one or the Scary one?." The Hunter stretched his claws before returning to the bed and gnawing on the hamburger that he had stolen from Bill during the commotion.

Louis and Francis played a few games of cards while Bill and Zoey cleaned up before they decided to take turns sleeping since they had a Hunter in the room with them. Bill decided to just get it over with and took the first watch. The only thing that kept him company was the snores of his companions and the endless sobs of the Witch. After five straight minutes of having to listen to her, he was seriously considering searching for anything that could be used to make a bomb. A snort behind him made him whirl around to see the Hunter groggily pulling the covers off himself.

The Hunter walked to the door with the Witch behind it, opened it, and then closed it behind him. Brief silence reigned before the unique screech of the Hunter could be heard, followed by the screams of the Witch. A dull thud was heard a few minutes later, and the Hunter came back into the safe house with his hands covered in blood. He laid down on the bed again and pulled the covers over his head. Bill's jaw dropped and he spent the rest of the watch looking out the door where the Witch used to be.

Nothing really eventful happened during Francis's watch, except for him using a small light he had found to do some "research on the last paper remnants of a once bustling city." He switched with Louis an hour and a half later after he was done "watching to make sure nothing happens." Louis sat trying to fix a cell phone that he had found in one of the smashed shops, because the one he had was long since gone. He was having little luck though, the only thing he could get the cell phone to do was tell him the time. There was no signal, or even a hint of one. The Hunter woke up from his slumber and rolled over to stare at Louis, with Louis finally snapping the cell phone shut in defeat. Louis paid him no mind or even a glance but decided to ask a question. "Were you the one who ate all the hamburgers a few days ago?"

The covers shifted in a gesture that appeared to be a guilty nod.

Louis opened and closed the cell phone again, trying to give it another chance. "Were you following us from that day on?"

The Hunter poked his head out from under the covers. "Before."

Louis dropped the phone. "Then YOU were the one that ate the last Twinkie!"

"If you're going to keep watch than the point is to keep quiet!" snapped Bill, throwing a pillow at Louis. "Some of us are trying to sleep here!" added Francis. Louis sulked as the Hunter pulled the blanket back over his head, leaving him to fiddle with the cell phone before he eventually gave up. When it was Zoey's turn to keep watch she noticed the Hunter was awake again and took the opportunity to change his bandages and clean his hands in a bucket of water. He put up a small fight, but allowed her to change the bandages and cleaned his hands before sitting on his bed.

He then crawled back under the blankets and dozed off, leaving Zoey to sit and stare at a nearby journal sitting under a canister that Louis had knocked over in the earlier standoff for the hamburger. She carefully moved the canister, despite its size it was very heavy, and lifted up the journal. It was damaged, with a few of the pages torn out and some covered in blood. _"Must have belonged to another survivor who left it in here when he or she left." _She thought, opening the journal to the first page. The writing was rough, implying that a man had been writing in this journal.

**"_Day 2 of the isolation, scientist report 1342._**

**_The infection has spread everywhere. Some are immune to it, and by some cruel twist of fate, they are hunted by their once fellow man. 'Special infected' are starting to become common, though nowhere near as much as the typical infected._**

**_The weapons that the military supplied us has done wonders against the infected, keeping us safe, though the special infected are starting to become overwhelming, some attacking with the common infected, complicating a few things. Since we were assigned to investigate the effects of the unexpected outbreak we have been in this city for two days, or isolation as we affectionately call it. The military armed me and another scientist as well as sent two military officials with us to insure safety. Our orders are to study the effects of the outbreak and if possible, capture a few of the special infected for study of the abilities and mutations. _**

**_The special types are the Hunter, Whose legs and hands have mutated to enable incredible jumps towards the living to tear at vitals. Able to blend in with the common infected, the only unique aspect of them is that they wear a sweatshirt that hides their identity. _**

**_The Boomer, whose bulbous form is easy to spot, but one must not shoot it when in close range or else a horrendous liquid will spray from their forms, which is capable of attracting common infected. The boomer is also capable of vomiting said liquid onto survivors and bringing forth the infected._**

**_The Smoker, who can be distinguished by the partial distortion of its face, has developed the ability to shoot a disjointed tongue at any group of people in an attempt to break them up. Usually is heard coughing and often isn't seen until a companion has been dragged off."_**

Zoey turned the page, which had a few pictures of the special infected that were listed on the previous page. Ironically, the picture of the Hunter was caught in mid pounce so the picture was blurred. She turned the page and saw the top letters written in red pen, emphasizing importance.

**" _DANGEROUS SPECIAL INFECTED!_**

**_The Witch is a rather odd breed of infected that won't attack unless provoked. She will usually sit in some kind of secluded area and cry about some kind of regret until someone disturbs her. An obvious tactical method is to go around her as far as possible but sometimes she will be blocking an escape route. Strangely enough though, she will only attack the individual who disturbed her. Caution: She looks weak but she isn't._**

**_The Tank, the worst state of infected possible, has mutated beyond human form, and is capable of demolishing walls and tearing up parts of concrete to throw at far away prey. It huge limbs make running impossible for its smaller lower half and mostly runs in the similar style to that of a chimp. It is extremely aggressive and seems to be immune to most things a group of survivors can use on it, requiring immediate cooperation of the group. Caution: Despite its size, it is fully capable of getting into seemingly narrow hallways._**

**_There may be another type, but no such sightings have been reported._**

**_End Report"_**

The last dozen pages were torn out but the last page remained. This page was written delicately, suggesting that the previous owner was now dead.

**"****_Day 5 of isolation, scientist 1346._**

**_Most of my party has been killed by infected and I await rescue from another party. What has been very strange to me over the past few days has been sightings of special infected where the infection has not yet completely mutated them, such as a sighting of a Hunter that runs when seen, but stares continuously before departure. _**

**_Another sighting has been of a smoker with a completely normal face yet must have developed a special mutation within its mouth to still gain the use of the tongue-lashing ability. The infection must spread slowly or even stop within different hosts meaning that several infected with special abilities may retain their human appearance and may even be able to blend into normal non infected society, by simply hiding any odd characteristics. _**

**_This fact intrigues me more than it disturbs me, would that smoker or that hunter be able to blend into our normal world? And by being around any normal person, would these infected regain or learn qualities of the human race? These rare infected are classified with the others of their kind, but they are in a class of their own. Since the infection broke out, there has been no such recorded event or sighting of an infected of any kind that looked normal or was capable of anything besides attack. They are one of a kind._**

**_I believe that the remains of humanity still left within these rare infected are very small, such as the ability to learn or even speak, but any memories of past life may be lost to them. These rare kinds are new individuals, capable of creating memories that are theirs and theirs alone. As such, these infected could be compared to children, or even teenagers._**

**_Despite all my speculation, I have not obtained any subjects of these infected and as I have traveled in this city, rare infected have eluded me as much as possible. Based on my speculations, these infected with the ability to think and comprehend are more powerful than a normal special infected and most likely would be a leader of its race. _**

**_I must study the rare infected further before I can assume anything else, though I will say that I believe that a rare infected can be far more dangerous than a normal infected because of its ability to think and learn. There is no doubt within my mind that these rare infected are able to use weaponry and may mimic a human in order to obtain prey. But they all vary in type. While the Hunter that I observed took off the minute I saw him, suggesting a gentle nature, the Smoker retreated upon sight of me, never mind my weapon, suggesting cowardice. I have yet to see any of the rare versions of the other three; Boomer, Tank, or Witch, but the Witch may be the only other infected kind to have a rare version. It would be impossible for the other two; the infection has spread too far internally as well as externally. _**

**_End Report."_**

Zoey closed the Journal and stared at the Hunter, who was starting to stir and stare groggily at the wall. The words of the journal drifted through her mind. _"There is no doubt within my mind that these 'rare' infected are able to use weaponry and may mimic a human in order to obtain prey." _He stared at her, watching her face as she sighed. _"I'll watch him for now, I'm still in charge."_ She mused, pulling her shotgun closer to her.

The next morning, Zoey changed the Hunter's bandages, staring closely at his eyes. He became uncomfortable with her staring at him and looked at the water in front of him. Bill holstered his gun at the exit of the safe house. " Hey, Zoey! And, uh… Hunter! We're leaving soon so get ready!" Francis packed his belongings as well as some of the leftover food from their little cookout last night. Louis grabbed some extra ammunition and changed the batteries of his flashlight before calling to the rest of the group. " Hey, Bill, Zoey, Francis, and… uh… Hunter. Do any of you want the last of the hambu-" he cut his sentence short as the last of the hamburgers disappeared into the Hunter's mouth.

Zoey chuckled. " I think you got your answer, Louis."

Francis stacked the blankets back neatly for some other person to use them before lifting his rifle and going to the exit. " You know, I haven't heard the Witch for awhile now. Think she went to sleep?" He asked. Bill pointed at the door, an amused smile on his face. "She's dead. The Hunter killed her last night. If anything, he cleared the stairs for us. Saves us some ammo."

Zoey spent a few minutes stuffing the journal into her bag, for later reading, jumping when Francis made an earth-shattering discovery. Coffee. Ground Coffee. Louis was bullied/convinced/ fiercely motivated into fixing a coffee machine and all three men sat around the bubbling pot like they were worshiping it. When it was ready, Bill and Francis formed a temporary truce and located some cups to partake in the steaming brew.

Zoey rolled her eyes and put a medical kit over the journal, just in case she needed to change the Hunter's bandages before they reached the next safe house. She was already carrying one for herself, thankfully there was extra. A white blur raced past her and ricocheted of one of the walls before scurrying under the neat pile of blankets. She didn't need to lift up the blankets to know what happened.

"All right. Who gave him coffee?" she snapped.

" Not me~!" sang Francis, hiding the empty cup.

She lifted the pile of blankets and watched the Hunter twitch due to sudden caffeine rush and sighed. " Yup. He's definitely one of a kind."

__

Don't you DARE give me any flames about the scientist's report; I will try and make a logical explanation as soon as possible. Once again, read and review, and I will try and actually get outside of the safe house in the next chapter. I repeat for clarity, DO NOT FLAME ME ABOUT THE SCIENTIST'S REPORT. I WILL IGNORE IT. I will make an explanation as soon as possible so BE PATIENT. Sorry for the flames of my own, but I had to repeat myself five times to my friends and I'm getting annoyed of doing so.

I'm still looking for funny L4D stories that I can put in here and what should the Hunter try next? PG-13 for any of my classmates reading this, they've always got their minds in the gutter.

See ya next time.


	5. Name

Chapter 5: In Which the Hunter receives trust and a name.

I had a little issue involving younger siblings with the earlier posting so I had to revise it. Sorry.

Ahhh! I'm finally going to give him a name! Don't hurt me; I spent all night thinking of the name! Don't flame me about it either.

Disclaimer: I do not own left 4 dead; I do own this fanfic and my hunter. YOU CAN'T HAVE HIM, RABID FANGIRLS DOWN THE BLOCK! Sorry, it actually happened...

All right, for the people who have been following my story from start to where it is now, thank you for your support and ideas, they have helped me so much. To those who became interested just recently, thank you for your support as well and please review and let me know who you are! I would appreciate it! No, the story isn't over, I'm just grateful.

By popular demand, aka nice reviewers, I will be putting the first person views back into the story, but don't haggle me about the quality. I am still improving, and I will get better.

For the person who commented on the Hunter's appearance (You know who you are) I noticed that little detail too, but I wanted my Hunter to look different than the others, to emphasize individualism.

Agh, now I'm ranting. Just read to the bottom before you make your review; that's all I ask.

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(Francis's POV)

Well, I made an interesting discovery today. Hunters can get really high off coffee. The Hunter Zoey adopted was bouncing off the walls before he came to a stop a few minutes later. Zoey glared at all of us, her gaze strong enough to make anyone who hadn't been exposed to it before cry. "All right, who gave the Hunter coffee?" She demanded. Nothing worse than an angry woman except for an angry woman with a gun.

"Not me~!" I hummed. I hid the empty paper cup behind my back, I had only given him a little of it anyways. He should calm down soon enough. After she checked on the Hunter, she turned to me, her eyes blazing.

"Francis..." She moaned, placing her hand on her forehead. "Why did you give the Hunter coffee?"

Oh crap, she found me out. Crossing my arms and trying to look as tough as I could, I returned her gaze. "Wanted to see what would happen." I replied. She grinned at me. "Now I know who did it."

My jaw dropped. "I thought you knew!"

Her grin got wider. "I didn't say that I saw you do it, did I?"

Oh shit... I just know I'm going to hate this...

--

(Survivors, out of POV)

Zoey unleashed her wrath upon Francis while the Hunter crawled back out from under the blankets, rubbing his head from the impact with the walls. He saw the fight and retreated back under the covers, remaining motionless until Zoey called him out. He came out again and remained in a crouching position, as Zoey knelt down to his crouching eye level. "I can't keep calling you Hunter when we go outside, Francis or Bill might shoot you." She sighed, putting her hands on her knees.

Louis put his hand on his chin. "You gonna give him a name, Zoey?" Zoey looked at him and nodded. "That's the plan. What would be a good name for a Hunter?"

Francis looked away from the group. "Target practice." he whispered.

Zoey's gaze darkened in his direction and he cleared his throat. "Hey, Old Man, can you think of something to call this Hunter? If it's up to me, I'm gonna call him Spot or something." he asked. Bill looked at the Hunter, who was deftly sneaking his hands into Louis's bag, searching while the bag's owner looked elsewhere. "How about Thief?" Louis noticed the Hunter's little antics and batted his claws with his hands. "The food in there is for later!" he told the Hunter.

Zoey ruffled her hands through the Hunter's hair, making him let out a low growl that sounded more like a purr. "Ark." she murmured.

Louis lifted his head after checking his bag. "Like Noah's Ark? The Ark that saved Noah during the flood?" Francis shrugged. "I hate Church." Bill looked elsewhere. "What don't you hate?"

Zoey continued to ruffle the Hunter's hair. "The Ark saved Noah, I have a feeling that this Hunter will help save us. Call it women's intuition. Okay, listen up. Your name is Ark, okay?" she told the Hunter. Ark tilted his head. "Arrrkk?" Zoey smiled. "Close. Ark."

Ark tried again. "Ark."

Louis rolled his eyes while Bill and Francis took turns sighing. "Okay, Zoey. He has a name now. Maybe we won't wind up shooting him. Can we GO now?!" snapped Francis. Zoey lifted her bag with the journal safely tucked inside and turned towards the door. "Let's go." Francis shoved the door open and Ark raced out, leading the way.

--

(Ark's POV)

As soon as the door was open, I bounded out the door, eyes alert and claws ready to take on anything. Lesser were everywhere. Almost made me wonder how many there were, it always seemed that there was no end to them. Bullets raced past me, lowering the Lesser count dramatically, the rest were easy pickings. I remained close to the group, listening to Bill's cry of "FUBAR!" (Whatever that means.) I also heard Francis complain endlessly. He never stops complaining, I wonder what he's going to do when he runs out of things to complain about?

I raced up the stairs and waited for them at the top, where the lesser weren't as common. The group mentioned that they needed to cross the rooftops to continue so when I had came out last night to rid my ears of the Witch's cries, I killed a few Lesser while I was at it.

I had stashed the remains of the Witch I killed in the corner where she had been crying, as a tribute to the end of her endless crying. Why do the Witches cry anyways? A Lesser interrupted my thoughts and I put my fist into his face, leaving my hand covered in blood. Don't bother me when I'm thinking. A tongue wrapped around my bloody wrist. These guys certainly are persistent. The tongue pulled me off my feet towards the owner of the tongue, who was at the very top of the stairs.

Big mistake.

I used the tongue pulling as momentum and gave the smoker the surprise of his life when I came flying at him, doubling the force of impact. I crushed his skull and gagged on the smoke that burst from the body. Now I know why these guys are called smokers, ugh, it stinks! Not to mention I can barely see! I coughed as I fumbled around, my eyes watering, until I found a door and opened it, bringing cool air into the room. Zoey and the others caught up, after the air had cleared, with Louis gingerly stepping over the body of the dead smoker and following me out onto the roof.

Previous survivors had put boards across the gaps on the roofs so that there was easy access to the other side. Over time though, these boards had become Lesser magnets, meaning that they would wobble and eventually break under certain amounts of weight. I leapt across the roof and received glares from Bill and Francis. Such a short distance was baby steps to me, really. However, the survivors...

Louis was scared stiff of the boards under his feet and refused to cross them while standing; He crawled across. Zoey, a little more confident, but not by much, was helped across by Bill, who commented that if the boards could hold Francis, it can hold anyone. Now it was Francis's turn to make rude hand gestures.

A moan made me look down over the side. A ladder led up to the roof we were on, and Lesser were climbing them. Fast. (A/N: What is up with that anyways?! Goddamn Infected can't open a stupid door, but they can climb ladders!) Francis pointed the gun down the ladder and opened fire, clearing the ladder of all enemies. Any infected that made it up the ladder were batted off before shot. A foul stench then reached my nose, burning it. it was much clearer than the scents of the survivors and the smell of gunpowder, and was very familiar. Boomer. One was nearby and would definitely be a problem for us. His foul vomit and the unstable boards could be death to the Survivors.

I could smell him long before I could hear him; and my claws itched for contact with his flesh. Just not what lay behind it. Zoey whispered "Boomer!" to the others and they all stood, alert. They scanned the taller buildings above, searching for the oversized infected. I waited for the wind to shift in my direction again before hurtling over the boards, ready to kill. I cleared a roof with a pounce and used a broken board as a spring to jump over a fence towards the stench. Hopefully I could kill him without getting covered in vomit this time. My killing intent died when I landed on the immobile remains of the Boomer. Someone else had gotten my kill.

The lower half was all that remained of the Boomer, the middle of it bearing a gaping hole much too large for it to have been a gunshot. Okay, who picked up a large gun when I wasn't looking? No, this hole was still too large. I could have put my fist through the hole, but I didn't want to, I didn't know if there was still vomit in there. Oddly though, this hole smells like cigarettes…

"Ark!" called Zoey. I looked away from the dead Boomer to the survivors. I'm going to have to learn how to start responding to that, she had to call it five times before I realized she was calling me.

--

(Survivors and Hunter, Out of POV)

Ark came trotting back to the group who had caught up, sitting down and watching Louis reload. Zoey craned her neck to look at the Boomer's corpse. "Geez, Ark, you didn't have to ram into him." Bill looked as well. "He didn't get it, Zoey. He's not covered in vomit. Something else got it." Francis lowered his gun and began to reload. "I'm glad it's dead. I hate Boomers." Ark tensed and rose to his feet, standing completely erect. Low growls emanated from his throat as he stared at the nearby roof. Another Hunter came from the roof and leaped at Francis while he was reloading, only to be sent sprawling to the ground as Ark's fist connected to his face.

Ark dropped to all fours and growled threateningly, challenging the other Hunter to face him. The other Hunter lifted himself off of the ground and took the challenge, shifting from side to side, growling. Both Hunters circled each other, the intruding Hunter glaring at Ark from under his hood and Ark returning the glare with the same ferocity. Louis aimed at the opposing Hunter but stared at Zoey when she placed her hand on the gun, stopping him. "Ark will win. Besides, you might hit Ark." she told him.

Francis, having been saved from injury, came to watch; all of the survivors standing like they were watching a brawl on a school campus. A battle between two Hunters had never been seen before, and the whole group was curious to see how this would play out. That was when Bill made an interesting observation. "Our Hunter's bigger than the other one."

The rest of the group looked at the fight, keeping an eye out for infected as well. The opposing Hunter stood around 4'11 while Ark stood at 5'2. Ark was much bigger than the other Hunter, and he used that to his advantage, his pounces landing with far more force. Ark was also faster and had the other Hunter pinned in no time, lifting him over his head. The other Hunter was then tossed screaming off the roof. Ark stretched out his claws, happy to finally be able to use them again. He opened his mouth in a yawn, revealing a set of canines that would make a vampire proud. He was still a little crazy from the coffee but it was starting to wear off, leaving him a little drowsy.

A loud thud from below indicated that the other Hunter had hit the pavement rather hard, and when Louis checked over the side, he confirmed that the Hunter wasn't moving at all. Ark, happy that he had managed to gain trust from Francis, who had thanked him, trotted near the group while hunched over slightly, ready to be useful again.

Zoey shook her head and looked at Ark. "Ark, could you go check ahead and see if there's something we can use to get to the street below?" she asked. Ark nodded eagerly and then crawled away in stealth mode and she turned back to the group. She glanced at the body of the lifeless Hunter on the ground below and turned her eyes back to the group. "I… I have something to show you guys," she began, taking the bloodstained journal out of her bag and handing it to Louis, who read the entries aloud.

When he finished, Francis looked at where Ark had vanished. "So, we've got the king of the Hunters or something like that on our hands? God, I hate this city. Full of surprises, not full enough on some decent chow." Bill's gaze shifted. "I just want to get out of this city in one piece, thank you." Louis looked at Zoey. "Zoey, I know you want to keep him because he saved us and all, and believe me, I'm grateful too, except for him stealing my stuff, but we're going to have to be careful. We don't know for sure if that Hunter is actually friendly or is waiting for an opportunity."

Zoey glared at him. "He has a name, you know. I'm worried too, but he's calm enough. He knows full well that if he does leap at us threateningly, we will shoot him. I just don't know what I'm going to tell him when we leave. We can't take him with us."

"Then quit getting attached!" groaned Francis. A loud crash behind Francis made him spin around. Ark was sitting on the roof. One of the rotten doors had fallen off its hinges, crashing to the ground. While he was scouting, he had encountered another Hunter with a bright red sweatshirt and appropriated it from him. His new red hood was neatly pulled over his face, keeping his ears warm as he stared at the group from under the hood.

Everyone quieted down and whispered to each other "How long was he there?" and "Did he hear anything?" before looking at him. Ark hopped off the roof and landed next to Bill. "Clear."

His claws were red again, leaving Zoey to wonder why she even bothers to clean his hands. Louis looked out over the path Ark had taken and saw that it was littered with bodies of infected, some missing more than a few limbs. "Yuck. There had better be a elevator going down over there, because I'm not taking anymore stairs." He commented.

Bill led the way, stepping over bodies of infected and wrinkling his nose from the stench. "I tell you, this smell and sight will haunt me for the rest of my days." Zoey leaped over an infected that was dangling on a board. "If we live that long."

Francis smiled at Bill. "You know, old man, you've been getting jumped by a lot of infected lately. I almost began to wonder, 'What would we do if we got rescued and Bill died before then?' Then, I started thinking. A memorial statue sounds nice, doesn't it?" Bill scowled at him. " I'll outlive you even if it kills me, Francis." Louis and Zoey laughed. Francis and Bill going at each other's throats was always good for a laugh in the city of infected. Ark looked in another direction, ignoring Bill's retort of implied intentional friendly fire. His keen nose picked up the wafting scent of food, and he leaped over the side of the roof in the direction of the scent. Landing on the sidewalk below, he wandered into a nearby building and made a heavenly discovery.

When Ark didn't return for a few minutes, Zoey looked over the edge, calling his name and then realized her efforts were futile. Instead of getting mad, she laughed uncontrollably, bringing the men over. When Louis looked over the side as well, he shook his head. "It's gonna take us forever to get him out of there, you do know that right?" Bill nodded in agreement. "Leave him be for now, I think he deserves it."

Francis peered over the side and looked at the nearby fast food joint, where Ark was in hamburger heaven below. "He'd better bring me one."

Zoey laughed as she found the elevator and hit the down arrow. Not many infected rushed them this time; Ark probably killed them all while examining the elevator. Bill was the last one to climb in, pressing the button for the ground floor. They waited patiently for the doors to close and spent their time in the elevator talking. Bill reloaded his rifle. "So, Is anyone else thinking that we're in over our heads with the Hunter?" Louis sighed. "I really don't know what to think sometimes. Half the time I'm wondering 'why us?' and the other half I'm trying to stay alive. I often can't think about anything else."

Francis snorted. "If the Hunter is just pretending then I'll shoot him, nothing to it." He lifted his gun to further prove his point. Zoey looked at the flashing numbers at the top of the elevator. "Do you think that the scientist's sighting of the Hunter was our Hunter? Certainly sounds the same." Bill shrugged. " With all that's been happening lately, I'll believe a lot of things. Point is, we just got to get to the hospital and get out of here as soon as possible."

The elevator stopped and let the survivors out into the building, where extra ammunition and a few rifles had been left behind for anyone to use. "How I love the sound you make," crooned Francis, acquiring a shotgun. "And I love the damage I can do with you too." Zoey found a pipe bomb and gently tied it to her belt, making sure the emitter was off. Bill found some painkillers and took a few for his leg while Louis patched up his arm.

Breaking the glass doors that used to be automatic, Zoey squinted to keep smoke from getting in her eyes. Several trash cans were on fire, providing light and endless amounts of smoke. "Lovely." she murmured. Only a few infected stood in front of the fast food place and a few shots from Zoey's pistols cleared the street. " Kinda quiet, isn't it?" she asked Francis, who was scowling at the trashcans. "That only means that there's a car or something that makes noise nearby." Answered Bill. Louis shuddered. "Try not to set it off this time, Francis."

Francis shot him a dirty look. "Oh, like I'm the cause of all our problems?" Louis looked at him. "You usually are." Francis swore as Bill opened the door to the fast food restaurant. A few infected, dressed like employees, stared at them through unblinking eyes before rushing them. Zoey clubbed one with her pistol, knocking it away so she could shoot it. One of the infected was near the cash register and was climbing over when Bill shot it. Louis got lucky and nailed one by a few chairs with a shot to the head. Francis went behind the cash register and shot one in the kitchen. "Do you want fries with that?" he crowed, feeling cocky.

Zoey looked around. "Where's Ark? I saw him go in here." The group fell silent until sounds of eating was heard from the back of the kitchen. Ark had discovered a stockpile of food and was sampling everything from the hotdogs to the soda. Bill stood there, watching him eat. "And I wonder where he gets that habit from, eh, Francis?" he taunted. Francis lifted his shotgun. " Don't make me shoot you, old man." Bill lifted one eyebrow. "You need to work on your bluffs, son. I don't feel the least bit threatened."

Zoey tugged on Ark's hood." Come on, Ark. We have to leave. We'll take some of it with us and you can have it later. Okay?" Ark finished a hotdog and nodded, his mouth covered in ketchup. Zoey fished one of the napkins out of the shipping boxes and started to clean his face. " Honestly. You're like a little kid." Ark stared at her, slightly offended as she finished cleaning and threw the napkin away.

Zoey took Francis's bag from him. " I need to use this. You only carry the bag around just for kicks anyways." Francis began to panic. " Uh, Zoey, I..." she opened the bag and took out his magazine, her eyes narrowing. " What... is this?" she asked. Francis snatched the magazine from her. " A sports magazine." Bill and Louis roared with laughter behind him and he yelled at them, his face a neon red.

Ark scratched his ear and watched the commotion with amused eyes. It had certainly become interesting since the survivors came. Zoey filled Francis's bag with some of the leftover food and permitted him to keep his magazine. Francis rolled up the magazine gently and managed to stuff it with the leftover hotdogs in his pack.

Zoey looked around again and noticed that Ark was missing for the second time in a day. "Now where did he go?" she moaned. Louis was helping himself to the ice cream maker and had made what he like to call, " An apocalypse sundae." It consisted of 14 scoops of ice cream, and had various types of sprinkles with chocolate syrup on top. Bill was just drinking one of the sodas from the still working machine. Ark was under Louis's table, looking like a dog who was waiting for a table scrap until he startled Louis with a screech and took off with half the ice cream.

Francis rolled his eyes. " Louis, how many times is that Hunter going to get away with stealing your food?" Louis hung his head. "as many times as it takes for me to get used to him." Zoey helped herself to a scoop of strawberry when she heard Ark whine. He had eaten all the ice cream quickly so he wouldn't have to return it and he suffered the consequences.

"Serves you right." muttered Louis. Bill opened the backdoor and looked outside.

"Another building. we'll have to go through this building to get around the blockade unless we want to fight our way through." Francis groaned. " Another building, another elevator. I hate elevators." Zoey shook her head as she went out the door. " Ark, come on. Francis, do us all a favor and just shut up."

Louis shot off the lock of the building and the group went inside, searching for an elevator.

Zoey found the elevator close by and stopped just before pressing the button. " Are we ready for this?" she asked. Louis nodded. There was a lot of room between the open door that they came through and the elevator, meaning a very large horde could fit in there with them. Meaning it also wasn't wise to split up from the group, even for a second.

Bill checked his gun while Francis lifted his shotgun to his shoulder and practiced aiming and shooting. "We're ready." they announced. When she hit the button, the elevator's gears started to turn, indicating that it was coming from the roof. "Get in the elevator, and we go to the sixth floor, got it? No heroics. When that elevator gets here, we get in and shut the door. " warned Bill. Everyone shook their heads in agreement. The infected started to climb over office desks and through the open door. Francis aimed his shotgun. "Here they come..."

Ark curled his legs under his body and leaped forward, knocking a few infected over like they were bowling pins and grabbed one's arm in his jaws, snapping the arm with a powerful bite. Zoey unleashed holy hell on a group that swarmed Louis, earning her some praise in marksmanship from Bill, who took off an infected's head with a well aimed shot. He then twisted and hit the infected that was to the left of him and shot it as well.

Francis used his shotgun as bat and knocked an infected into Bill, who cursed loudly and shot it while cursing Francis into next week. " Why on earth did you do that?!" he snapped. Francis shrugged while shooting. " Seemed like a good idea. " Ark threw another infected into a group of them, and the leapt into the group, tearing several limbs from their owners.

The arrival of the elevator brought more infected to the scene and Zoey decided to use her pipe bomb, throwing it out of the door they had come in through. Ark, who was closest to the door during the fight, saw the pipe bomb land near him and leaped away as the infected rushed to get the beeping object. A satisfying explosion shook the walls and the doors of the elevator opened, inviting the surivivors inside. As they ran inside, Francis whispered to Louis. "I was afraid that the Hunter might bring the pipe bomb back to us like a dog would." Louis chuckled as Bill stared the two of them down.

Ark waited outside, unsure of what to do. Was he allowed in, or would he have to go to the roof and work his way down? Bill's gruff voice shouted "Get your ass in here before I shoot it!" and Ark scurried inside, the doors closing behind him.

--

End Chapter 5

(Achievement(s): Dead Stop)

The Hunter's name, which is now Ark, holds a symbolic meaning towards me, before you review about name choices.

Ark is the name of my next door neighbor who moved away during the writing of chapter 4 to another state. We still talk over the phone, but it isn't quite the same as racing through the neighborhood when he isn't here. His real name is Alexander, but we call him Ark because he's always bragging about how one day he will save us from something, like Noah's Ark. The only thing heroic that he's done is shell out money at the pizza parlor for a large bill. He moved so he could see his mother more, and is comfortable there with his girlfriend who moved with him.

But I digress from this tale, and instead focus on you, the reader. Read and Review! The Survivor's journey and Ark's tale is far from complete and your reviews really help when it comes to updating. I'm sorry that I couldn't pick any of your name choices, but that event was important to me.

For certain readers, I will opt away from the first person view next time. I'll also try and make the chapters longer.

Ciao!


	6. Scream

Chapter 6: In which the Hunter hears a scream

*Faints*

So many reviews, making head spin... can't answer them all, sorry... I'll get to you... I hope...

Okay, so I got positive and neutral/negative feedback from the previous chapter so I will try my best to accommodate that. Keep in mind though, that I will never be able to write perfectly for just any one reader so bear my flaws and help me improve my grammar and spelling with emails.

The Hunter, whose name is now Ark, has received quite a few glomps from the girls in my neighborhood, AKA they come with pitchforks, tie me up, and hug my computer, where Ark resides. I have another infected character that I will put in this story, so please, treat him kindly. He should appear in the next chapter or the one after that if I'm lucky.

These chapters are meant to be short and sweet, so stop bothering me, JEN.

Disclaimer: I do own Ark, but I do not own L4D. Damn.

--

_(Recap)_

_The arrival of the elevator brought more infected to the scene and Zoey decided to use her pipe bomb, throwing it out of the door they had come in through. Ark, who was closest to the door during the fight, saw the pipe bomb land near him and leaped away as the infected rushed to get the beeping object. A satisfying explosion shook the walls and the doors of the elevator opened, inviting the survivors inside. As they ran inside, Francis whispered to Louis. "I was afraid that the Hunter might bring the pipe bomb back to us like a dog would." Louis chuckled as Bill stared the two of them down. _

_Ark waited outside, unsure of what to do. Was he allowed in, or would he have to go to the roof and work his way down? Bill's gruff voice shouted "Get your ass in here before I shoot it!" and Ark scurried inside, the doors closing behind him. _

--

The elevator music annoyed the hell out of the survivors as they waited by playing several songs about staying alive. "If I hear 'I will survive' one more time, that speaker is going to be scrap metal." growled Francis. Zoey groaned as well. "Why do building managers insist on having elevator music? Louis, do something about that speaker, or I'm gonna go nuts." Louis looked up from the elevator panel. "Zoey, I'm already busy with the door. Can it wait?" he mumbled, taking a few more wires out of the panel.

The elevator had made it to the sixth floor, but the doors had gotten stuck. Rather than follow Francis's idea and shoot the panel, Louis tried to restart the system and get the doors open properly. Bill was not amused with having to stay in a crowded elevator with three other people and a Hunter, and he voiced his opinion and disdain every five minutes. " I tell you, if I had known about the elevator, I would have taken the stairs." He grumbled.

Zoey looked at the door, hoping it would melt. "If someone had come to my dorm room and said that I would be running and fighting for my life in a zombie apocalypse with three guys and an adopted Hunter, I would have said that they have seen far more cheesy zombie films that I did." Bill lifted his arm and used his lighter to light a new cigarette. The smoke filled the room, making Ark gag and the others glare at Bill. "Put that out!" snapped Louis, clearing the air around the panel.

Francis wrinkled his nose from the smoke. "If you die, I just know you're coming back as a smoker." Bill crushed the cigarette under his foot. " If you die, I just know you'll come back as a… wait, Zoey? What type of infected has no brain whatsoever?" Francis snarled at Bill and moved to face him, kicking Ark out of the way. Ark, who was peacefully sitting on the floor, tried to hide behind Louis while Zoey tried to break up the fight. Zoey moved in between them, giving them both glares that silenced them. " Guys," she began. " We are trying to escape the city in the middle of a ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE! Can we please have a little teamwork?"

"Junior over here started it." muttered Bill, feeling like he was confessing for stealing.

"You started it with that cig, you old coot!" retorted Francis, feeling equally stupid. Zoey put her hands on her hips. " You boys are going to play nice until we get to the helicopter and then we don't have to look at each other ever again? Got it?" Bill and Francis rolled their eyes, each in opposite directions. " YES, MOM."

Ark eventually got annoyed with the enclosed space and the fighting and slammed his hands through part of the elevator, forcibly opening the door just as Louis got the system working. Louis hung his head in defeat, trudging after Ark who was storming down the hallway, looking for an opponent. Zoey shrugged at Bill and Francis who still were in the elevator before running to catch up.

"Hey, guys! Wait up!" she called. Bill and Francis came out of the elevator and brought up the rear, everyone listening for the sounds of any special infected. None could be heard, but the group proceeded quietly, having been exposed to the fact that Ark doesn't growl or scream when attacking.

"I think I liked it when the infected were always noisy and easy to find." commented Francis, shining his flashlight into an open door. Inside were words written on the walls, just like the other safe houses and random locations across the city. Zoey shined her flashlight on the wall as well, the beam from it being much darker, meaning she had to change the batteries soon.

"The noise is bad. Very, very, very, bad. Do not alert the noises!" she read. Louis shook his head and sighed. "Well, I'm lost. What are the noises?" Bill whispered into his ear. " The voices that talk to Francis when he takes painkillers." Francis tore his flashlight away from the wall and shined it into Bill's eyes.

Bill staggered backwards onto a chair and fell over, with Francis snickers making him even angrier. Ark sighed and started to wonder exactly why he found the survivors interesting. Their teamwork was horrible and their attitudes always were good for a laugh but could get him hurt. He was about to go scout ahead and let Bill and Francis fight it out when he heard chuckling. Zoey glared at Francis in the dark. " It's not funny anymore, Francis. Cut it out." Francis looked around the room. " I stopped laughing a few seconds ago. It's not me." Louis edged closer to the others. "Which kind of infected laughs?" Bill stood up and moved closer as well, all of them in a tight formation. "You tell me."

Ark listened carefully and found that the laughing was coming from the next room over. Creeping into the room quietly, he looked around, searching. Zoey crept in after him, followed by the men like a over-used cliché horror movie. All of them turned off their flashlights for fear of the infected being the type to startle easily. The chuckling turned into insane laughter, sending chills down Louis's spine.

An infected sat in the corner, still laughing like a madman. The infected looked like someone who escaped from the local asylum*, with crisscrossing belts binding his arms. He stood upright when he saw the survivors and Ark, who were unsure of what to do, and screamed. His screams were so loud that all of the survivors had to clap their hands against their ears while a nearby windowpane shattered. Ark covered his ears as well; not knowing what this infected was until it ran past them and out of the room, still screaming.

The infected ran down the hallway and disappeared, his screams traveling down other hallways and stopping only moments later. Several infected came rushing through the hallway, like when a car alarm is set off. "What in the HELL was THAT?!" exclaimed Bill as the infected rushed them. Zoey ducked under an infected and shot its stomach. "I don't know, Bill! I don't know!" she shouted.

Louis kicked an infected out of the way and shot another. "That scream called the infected like a car alarm or a Boomer!" "But why did it run away?" asked Zoey as she dodged a swipe from an infected. "It can't fight." stated Francis. "Did you see its arms? It can't move them. All it can do is call the others and run for it." Zoey looked out the door, past the infected. "When Francis says something smart, we're really in deep trouble."

"HEY!" growled Francis.

Ark grabbed an infected and lifted him, throwing him through the window to the ground below. He then punched another and shoved his claws into its throat. It fell to the ground lifeless, eyes devoid of all, yet reflecting all like glass. Ark leaped over the table and slugged another one, sending it crashing into a nearby wall where it remained there. A second Hunter, smaller as well, leaped at him and he wasted no time teaching it who was in charge. Zoey looked in Ark's direction as she heard a satisfying crack and saw the second Hunter fall to the ground, his neck having been snapped.

"_Good god, I can't believe how strong this Hunter is!" _she thought while rescuing Bill from a crowd of infected. When the infected count had dropped to only Ark, the group sat down to recover while Zoey tied a bandage around her arm. Louis finished tying another bandage around Bill's leg before looking at Francis, who was standing guard. "What on earth was that infected?" he asked. Bill stood up and put weight on his leg, testing it. "Certainly wasn't any infected we've known and encountered." Zoey looked at the open door, where bodies of infected were piled high in the hallway. "A new strain of the infection, perhaps? Because we haven't seen that type before." Francis looked away from the door for a split second.

"Hopefully a type that we won't see again."

Ark, not needing any kind of medical treatment, scouted ahead, keeping a close eye out for the screaming infected. The smell of fresh blood caught his attention and he opened the door to another room, where there was writing on the wall. Ark came close to the wall and ran his finger along it, pulling his hand away when his finger was coated in blood. Leaning in close to the wall, he sniffed it, trying to see if the blood belonged to another survivor. It smelled of infected and faintly of cigarettes, just like the wound on the Boomer from the roof. Backing up, he looked at the wall and read the letters in his mind before repeating them to himself.

"Beware of the Screamer…" he read.

Turning around, he stepped on a shard of broken glass and looked at the broken window to the left of him. The window was coated in blood, just like the wall, and the smell was the same. Infected. He sidled to the window while ignoring Bill's reminiscence on his old war days and looked out the window. The infected that had run off screaming lay unmoving on the ground, its body covered in shards of glass. Its neck showed signs of strangulation and it must have been pushed out of the window. Or dragged out.

Spying the fire escape next to him, he jumped onto it and headed down the stairs to where the body was. Kneeling to better examine the corpse, his nose detected cigarettes again. "Ark! What are you doing down there?" called Zoey from the window. "The better question is, What are we doing up here?" grunted Francis, jumping onto the fire escape and making his way down. Bill jumped onto it as well. "He's got a point. We've passed the barricade, so we don't have to stay in this building any longer. Best to take our leave while we still can." Louis followed him, with Zoey bringing up the rear. When she stepped onto the street, she joined the others in examining the corpse. "So this is a Screamer…" she murmured.

Bill reached out and nudged the 'Screamer' with his boot. "The infection is getting worse. New infected are starting to show up. Kind of feels like when the enemy brought in a new weapon we didn't have yet." he stated. "Yeah, well, I'd be happy with any military any day now." whispered Louis. Ark stared up at the sky, past the window where the Screamer had plummeted to its death. It looked like it was going to rain soon, and Ark didn't feel like getting wet again. He shuddered at the thought of the cold rain and started looking around for shelter.

A tongue snaked out and wrapped around Francis's ankle, dragging him away while he yelled for any kind of help. Grabbing his shotgun, Bill ran to help him, followed by Ark, who was about to pounce on the tongue when the tongue let go of Francis and disappeared. Ark chased the fleeting tongue while Louis and Bill helped Francis up. Spitting dirt out of his mouth, Francis checked to make sure everything was alright." Fucking smoker." He snarled. Zoey caught up to them and stooped to catch her breath as Ark came back, hanging his head. He didn't catch the offending tongue, or a glimpse of a smoke trail.

Bill looked at the empty street. "What on earth was that about?" Zoey looked around. "Look, that door can be opened from the outside. We should check inside for a safe house." She pointed at a closed door that was partially open. Francis glared at her. "A smoker drags me off and lets me go for no reason and you're worried about a damn door." Zoey grinned at him. "We all know that you wouldn't make a good meal for it anyways." Francis ripped open the door cursing and stormed inside, angrily taking out any unlucky infected in the room. "Are you coming or not?" he snapped, going through another door.

Ark shrugged and walked after him, stepping casually over the bodies of the mauled infected. When he had first met Francis, Ark was terrified of him and the gun. But now, since the survivors had allowed him to come with them, he was no longer afraid of Francis's yells. There was still a lingering threat in the air, should he try anything that the survivors didn't like, but he was part of the group. Francis continued to rant and rave as he prowled the rooms, obliterating anything that moved; even machinery wasn't safe from his wrath. Louis sighed as he walked behind Francis. "At least only Francis will have to reload." he joked to the group, trying to lighten the mood.

As if to contradict him, a Boomer vomited on Louis, ringing the dinner bell for the remaining infected.

"Oh, Goddamnit!" he shouted, wiping his eyes clear of the vile sludge. Infected descended upon him, and Francis was more than willing to help, making Louis slightly more afraid of Francis rather than the horde. Determined to keep Francis away from him, Louis opened fie on the horde, yelping when they knocked him to the ground. Zoey and Bill leaped headfirst into the fray, shooting wildly and punching everything else. Ark reached into the group of infected and helped Louis up, using his other arm to take an infected individual's head off cleanly.

"Thanks, Ark." said Louis, taking up his pistols again and killing some of the horde. Ark felt slightly pleased with himself: no one else but Zoey had called him by his name. Louis had called him by the name that Zoey had given him. Bill surveyed the area after the fighting had stopped and all the infected had ceased coming through doors and windows. "I repeat: How many people were in this city when the infection hit? What the hell was it, a convention?" Zoey shrugged.

"Oi, there's a safe house up ahead! Get your asses in here, or I'm closing the door without you! " shouted Francis from another room. He pried open the door and held it open for the others and Ark to come inside. Zoey sat on the floor while Louis and Bill shoved a dismantled refrigerator in front of the door, securing it in place. Bill rested against a table and shuffled through the pile of ammunition on it, searching for the ammunition for his gun. Francis sat on the floor and lied down, back facing the wall with the writing. He was starting to get sick of the walls that held dying messages of survivors who didn't make it.

Zoey took some time to examine Ark's stomach and arm injuries, before opening up the spare medical kit that she was carrying for Ark. " I can take the bandages off the arm, but I think the ones on your stomach should stay on for one more day." She remarked, untying the bandages around his arm. Louis had sat on the ground next to her, crossing his legs. "Are you going to be a doctor, Zoey?" Zoey made Ark lie still so she could unwrap the bandages around his stomach. "I'm no doctor," she began. "I'm just stopping the blood flow and letting natural healing abilities take over." Louis shrugged. "Still, you're pretty good at it."

She smiled at Louis before motioning to Ark that he could sit up, since she had changed the bandages. Ark rolled over instead, mimicking Francis, who just glared at him while Bill lit a cigarette. He had found a pack inside the office building that no one was using so it was fair game. Francis stopped glaring at Ark and directed it at Bill. "Put that damn thing out. I want to sleep in clean air tonight."

Bill took a long drag on his cigarette. "I'll put it out in a minute. Deal with it for now." He exhaled, letting a steady stream of smoke emanate from his lips. Ark sat up and put his face next to Bill, sniffing. Bill's cigarettes were different than the smell that was on the walls, on the Boomer, and on the Screamer. The other smell was much sweeter in comparison. Bill put his cigarette out in an ashtray on the table, glaring. "Hey, Hunter. What was that with the sniffing?"

Zoey glared at Bill. "His name is ARK." Ark stared at Bill. "Different." Bill looked at him confused while Ark sat down on the ground again, this time closer to Louis. Louis moved away from Ark. "I know your tricks. The minute I look away, something of mine that can be eaten will vanish. Not happening this time." Ark moved even closer, before feigning attack with his left arm and stealing Louis's bag with his right.

"Give that back!" Louis snapped. Ark held the bag closely, staring at him in another standoff. "Would it kill you guys to go to SLEEP?!" shouted Francis from the floor. Bill propped himself against the wall and stood watch while Louis retrieved his bag from Ark and used it for a pillow. Zoey wrapped herself in a blanket as Ark found another blanket and curled up under it as well. Under the blanket, Ark absentmindedly thought over the day's events while eating the hot dog he had stolen from Francis's bag while Louis was retrieving his bag and not looking.

Outside, the rain began to fall on the city.

--

End Chapter 6

I repeat: These chapters are meant to be short and sweet, so for the love of god, quit bothering me about the length of the story, you crazy rabid fangirls down the street! I swear, they never stop bothering me. Okay, so Ark has managed to find a place on the team and they are now working their way to the hospital.

*The screamer was a rejected L4D boss that had the ability to attack hordes with its screech. Since it had no attack capacity, being an asylum escapee, it was axed and the horde attracting ability was given to the Boomer.

Read and Review!

Next chapter, I shall tell you how to make an apocalypse sundae! (After I recover from the first one I made...)


	7. Friend

Chapter 7: In which the Hunter makes a friend?

Disclaimer: I do not own L4D. Ark is mine though.

Yeah, so I got banned from the comp for a few days so now I can answer your reviews and emails again. Long story, Don't ask.

Apocalypse Sundae:

You will need;

14 scoops of ice cream (2 weeks after infection, 14 days, 14 scoops, get it?)

A bowl large enough to hold it in (The city)

Syrup, if desired (smoker)

Banana, if desired (Tank)

Chocolate chips, if desired (Witch)

Chocolate turtle shell covering, if desired (Boomer)

Cherries, if desired. (Hunter)

Combine as you see fit and enjoy with three other people. (survivors)

I, once again, thank you for all the reviews. *Faints and cannot be revived*

No, for some reviewers, I did not make a fake contest just to piss you off, I actually intended to use Zeke, suggested by Curse Pen, but when my friend moved away, that was that. Another reason I admire the guy was that he was the only guy on our block with an Xbox and L4D. Now I have to go to another part of my town to play L4D because I don't have an Xbox. I will get one eventually!

Please read this chapter fully and read the notes at the end.

--

"Wake up, Hunter." muttered Francis, nudging Ark awake. "Get up, or else we'll eat your share of breakfast." Ark sat bolt upright at the mention of food and yawned, shaking his head from side to side. He had slept rather well on the floor, despite Francis snoring through the night. Louis was the only victim of the snoring monster, and hardly slept a wink through the night. He refused to stir from his bed, even when Francis shook him like a rag doll. Louis covered his face with his hands, trying to block out the light of the room and give the illusion that he wasn't awake.

"Guess his share is up for grabs." shrugged Bill, staring at the plates that contained some of the leftover food that they had taken from the restaurant and the nearby vending machines. Ark stared at Louis, who still refused to budge, and took his share of the food and picked up Louis's portion with it. Francis glared at him. "Stop stealing for one minute, will you?" Ark ignored Francis and crawled over to Louis. He offered the plate to him, nudging the blanket off of him. Louis opened one eye and glanced at the plate Ark was trying to give him. "That's mine, isn't it?" he mumbled, still trying to adjust to the bright light of the safe house. Ark nodded slightly and set the plate down before returning to his bed on the floor and starting to eat.

Zoey smiled as she ate her portion of the food, which was some bacon and a few candy bars, and then laughed when Ark expressed difficulty with the candy bars. To her, Ark felt like a little brother who would get into trouble if not watched carefully. But whenever she was about to treat him like one, he quickly reminded her that he was a Hunter, and a dangerous one at that. She reached over to him to help him open the wrapper when he tore it open with his claws, ripping the candy bar in half. The filling of the candy bar spilled out onto his wrist, like the blood of his prey. She drew her hand back and continued eating her food.

Louis sat up and began to eat finally as Bill went through the medical kits and slung one onto his back. Ark patiently waited for Louis to finish his food before staring intently at Francis. Francis backed up, a common sign by anyone being stared at by a Hunter. Ark looked him over before looking away; Francis had already eaten everything worth stealing. He lifted himself off of the bed and then waited patiently by the door as they finished eating and preparing for the next trip ahead. Francis took a moment to shuffle through his bag and then signaled that he was ready to leave as soon as Louis was ready. Zoey stopped to switch out a pistol for a hunting rifle and picked up some ammunition for it, putting the ammo in her pocket. She had been unlucky the last trip, accidentally wading into a horde with only a pistol, so this time she wanted more firepower. Louis picked up a second pistol and held it tightly while Bill lit a new cigarette. Bill put his pack back into his breast pocket and frowned. He was starting to run out of cigarettes.

Once everyone was fully prepared, Bill cautiously opened the door that led to a very long hallway that seemed to have no end. Louis's face fell as they began to head down the hallway. "I thought we were done with the buildings..." he moaned. Bill opened a door and then closed it again. "As long as we don't find another Screamer, I'll be happy. Even with Francis shooting everything that moves. Hey! Save it for the infected!" Francis looked at Bill, smiling. "I was saving it for the infected. Do you see that Boomer in the window over there? I got it." he smirked again as he pointed at a shattered window.

Everyone looked out the window and saw that there was a Boomer, or at least half, in the building directly next to them. Francis began to brag openly about his kill and the rest of the group, including Ark, rolled their eyes.

"We're on the ground floor, right Louis?" Zoey asked, ignoring Francis. Louis had spent part of the night in the safe house memorizing a map to get to the hospital. "Yeah, we go through this hallway into the hotel across the street and then down into the subway. From there, we follow the sewers to the hospital exit and then work our way up. Not going to be easy, though. There's still a lot of ground to be covered. I just hope that radio is still working when we get there." Ark followed only half the conversation; the rest he couldn't understand. Why was the hospital place so important?

Ark shook his head and continued ahead while Francis continued to brag about his kill. "Don't get cocky, Son. Some things have a way of coming back to haunt you." warned Bill. Francis stopped laughing long enough to look at him. "Being with you is already haunting enough, thanks." Zoey and Louis shook their heads and followed after Francis, who was quickly retreating from the angered war veteran aiming a gun at him. Ark opened another door and sighed in disgust when the room was empty. It was times like this, when everyone was fighting or in a bad mood, that he partially wished for something to happen. Not that he was asking for a Tank, though.

As they got further down the hall, Bill and Francis continued to exchange insults; some referring to age or manhood. Several times Bill threatened to kill Francis, but Francis retorted back until Zoey said something to make them both mad. With the lack of action from the infected, one would think that the survivors, accompanied by Ark, were just a bunch of travelers armed to the teeth with a severe dislike of each other. When they reached the end of the hallway, they shot open the glass doors to enter the Hotel from the building they were in, but stopped dead when they stepped out into the street.

Infected lay everywhere, each missing several limbs, including the head. "What walked through here, Chicago Ted?" muttered Francis as he stepped over the remains of the massacre. The rain fell heavily; the smell of the rain overpowering the scent of the infected's rotting remains. Ark covered his nose as Zoey looked at some of the parts lying about on the ground, shivering slightly. When she had holed herself up in her dorm room, she had watched movies with this scenario all the time and speculated on what was going to happen next. There was a very fine line between the movies and real life, and she knew that she had crossed from the movie line to real life. Ark uncovered his nose and started to sniff around, ignoring the powerful scent of rotting flesh. Bill kicked an infected aside and muttered to himself intently, calling the others over and pushing the infected corpses out of his way.

It was faint, but Ark detected a sweet smell was in the air.

Louis and Bill cleared a path through the carnage, pushing infected aside gently, making a pathway for everyone to follow. Francis ignored the path and stomped through, stepping on everything between him and the hotel. "The path is here so we don't step on them." Zoey called out. "They're infected, but we can at least give them a little comfort in death by not stepping on them!" Francis ignored her and stopped in front of the door as Zoey followed Bill and Louis's path and came next to him in front of the door. Louis carefully opened the door and ducked quickly as a small Hunter leaped where his head was, landing on Francis, screeching. Ark crushed the Hunter's head in his hand and tossed it aside, a look of amusement on his face as Bill roared with laughter. Zoey couldn't help but smile at Francis's sudden misfortune as well; Karma for his earlier bragging had come back to bite him on the ass. Hard.

"I told you things have a way of coming back to haunt you." smiled Bill. Francis growled at him and glanced at the others. "He warned you." Louis pointed out. Zoey jumped backwards when she heard a loud snore, crashing into Francis, who was getting off the ground. "What was that?" she yelped. Louis jumped as well. "Oh, god. A new infected that snores! Quick, where is it?" Bill ripped open a door and aimed his gun inside before rushing to the next room, rolling his eyes the whole time. The odds of finding a new type of infected that was sleeping was almost as rare as finding another infected that could talk. Still, they had encountered the never before seen Screamer and that alone was enough to make them cautious. Zoey and Francis took the doors on the right while Louis followed Bill to the left.

Ark headed for the door straight at the end of the hallway, leaving the other rooms to be checked by the survivors. The snores got louder as he got closer to the end of the hall. Exercising caution, he opened the door carefully and peered inside. The television set was on, showing a news show about the spread of the infection with a map of the spread. Ark ignored the set and searched the room, sniffing the air. Several beds littered the room, some knocked over, and some broken in half. The bed closest to the window that overlooked the outside was well kept and occupied. The blankets were on the bed, wrapped around a snoring individual.

Ark lowered himself to the ground and approached the bed carefully, pulling on the covers. The odds of it being an infected were too great for him to take any chances. The covers fell to the floor as a man rose off the bed while scratching his head. A cigarette dangled from his lips as he ran his left hand along his right arm, which had been crudely bandaged. The man appeared to be around Francis's age, with unkept black hair and brown eyes. He took a deep drag on his cigarette and exhaled a thin stream of smoke, the sweet smell filling the room. He glanced over the side of the bed and saw Ark, who was still sitting there, and leaped off the other side of the bed, screaming loudly.

"Ahhh! Don't kill me, I'm harmless! And I'm stringy! Really! Plus, I- Hey, you're an infected." he observed. Ark lifted an eyebrow and watched the man with a confused look, his mind full of questions. Who was this? The man climbed back onto the bed and sat cross-legged, eyes watching Ark. He took a drag on his cigarette and extended his tongue, far beyond that of a normal human, letting his tongue rest on his arm. "Smoker." Ark hissed. The man held his cigarette in his left hand letting the smoke circle about the room. "Hunter. But your smell is different. Pounced on some perfume or something?" Ark glared at him, thinking about the shampoo Zoey used to clean his hair with. "Ark." He growled. The smoker lifted the corners of his mouth in a smile. "Ark? Is that a name? Mine's Sion." Ark took a quick glance at Sion. He stood at 5'8 with a military jacket over a faded black T-shirt and brown pants. Sion lowered his eyes and let out a sigh after Ark was finished examining him. "_I've been in this place for days."_

To anyone but Ark, Sion would just have been partially coughing and wheezing, but to Ark, it was the language of an infected with some intelligence. Ark closed his mouth and growled, varying between a snarl and a deep whine. "_Were you the one who attacked the Boomer and the Screamer?" _Human tongue was still new to Ark, the tongue of the infected was much easier to use, though any human couldn't understand it. Sion yawned. "Boomer? Is that what the fat one was called? I just called him the vomiter. He was getting too close to me, so I got rid of him. As for the other one, He woke me up." Ark ran his claws along the ground and growled deeply, no meaning in the noise, just a threat. Sion spoke much too clearly for an infected who just barely managed to regain some sense of humanity.

Sion panicked and corrected himself. "Uh, I- guh. I'm sorry. For lying, that is. I wanted some company; the tv isn't much of a companion. All I've learned from it is how to talk, but not much else. When I saw you following the humans, I followed you, but I didn't stop at night." Francis barged into the room, startling Ark and sending Sion into another wave of pleas, retracting his tongue quickly. "Don't shoot me, I wasn't the one who attacked you, honest! It was the other smoker!" Francis lifted his eyebrows and looked at Ark, who just stared at him.

"Who are you?" Francis asked. Sion shoved his hands into the pockets of his army jacket. "Just a person looking for some company." Ark growled at him and he began to sweat. "Come on, Ark, I'm harmless, honest!" he pleaded. "If anything, I can help you!" he waved his hand about as he spoke, a faint jingle from the dog tags on his wrist. Ark continued to glare as Bill, Zoey, and Louis came into the room, making it much more crowded. Francis and Bill moved closer to the door, allowing Zoey and Louis to take a look at their odd discovery. Zoey looked him up and down, making Sion feel uncomfortable until she spoke. "How have you managed to live here all this time?"

Sion shoved his hands back into the pockets of his jacket. "Uh…" Ark reached up and grabbed Sion's cigarette and pulled it out of his mouth, revealing that Sion's distended tongue was always firmly wrapped around the cigarette to prevent loss. Also revealing that he was a Smoker. Louis jumped while Francis and Bill aimed their guns at him. "_Rare Smoker with a non-distorted face…" _thought Zoey as she watched Ark playfully tug on Sion's tongue. Sion looked at the ceiling. "Guess the Tank is out of the building…" Ark got bored of playing with Sion's tongue and started to play with the dog tags wrapped tightly around his wrist. Sion forcefully ripped his arm away from Ark and shouted, "Don't touch that!" before settling down and apologizing.

Zoey approached him and took one of the dog tags in her palm as the men continued to aim their guns at him. "Sion Severent, infantry division. Is this yours?" Sion lowered his eyes to the floor. "No. I just… carry them. They belonged to someone else." His eyes failed to hide the intense sadness hiding within, a tale of regret. Looking up, he made eye contact with Zoey, Bill, Francis, Louis, and Ark, staring at each one of them in turn. "May I go with you? I have something I need to do. I promise I won't attack anything you guys don't tell me to; I'll be just another weapon in your arsenal. But I need to go with you. Please."

Bill and Francis looked at each other, confused and skeptical. Never before had they met someone who was practically begging them to go with them. Ark came because Zoey forced them to keep them, but here was a smoker asking to go with them for no obvious reason! Louis, being the second most compassionate of the group sense that Sion was really desperate and needed their help. He knew that Zoey must already sense that, for she was petting Ark on the head and asking him to look after Sion. Bill looked at Louis, who had walked over to Sion, and dragged Francis outside to talk for a few seconds.

Francis crossed his arms and glanced into the room where Ark was leaping around the room, playing a game of keep away with Sion's cigarette. Sion chased Ark around the room, occasionally trying to pin the playful Hunter. "What are you trying to get outta me?" Francis asked. Bill took a moment to glance into the room as well before answering. "We're going to have to take this one with us too." Francis looked at him with a look of shock on his face. "What?!" Bill dropped his cigarette and crushed it underfoot. "See that?" he asked, pointing into the room. Inside, Sion was talking to Zoey and Louis and all three of them began to smile. Ark was lying on the bed next to him and playfully batting at Sion's dog tags, fascinated by the glittering metal. Bill turned back to Francis. "Even if we protest, it's three against two."

Francis grunted in disgust and kicked at the ground. He was in no mood to adopt another infected; the food-stealing Hunter was enough trouble as it is. Throwing his hands up in the air, he mumbled "First a Hunter, now a Smoker. What's next, a Screamer or a Witch?" before re-entering the room. "All right, you smoker," he said to Sion. "You can come with us as long as you listen to the Hunter over there. I trust him more than you, got it? But if I see anything suspicious, you'll be smoking through a hole in your face."

Sion brought his hands up in a swift salute. "Yes, Sir, Hunter's the boss. No problem here. None whatsoever." The tags jangled as he continued to salute Francis. Ark rolled over and leaped off the bed into the hallway. "Go." Louis patted Sion on the shoulder as he left the room after Ark. "Welcome aboard, pal." As Zoey passed him, she chirped."Come on!" Francis glared at Sion until he darted out of the room yelling "Wait for me!" as Bill brought up the rear.

--

All right. Before certain people get started on me: no, Sion doesn't remember his past life, this will be explained in a later chapter. Yes, Sion's speech ability will be elaborated on in the next chapter. Yes, I know there wasn't much action here, but bear with me. And yes, I am sorry for spelling errors. I'm also sorry for this chapter if it's boring anyone. But I did my best in trying to introduce my new character.

**

Sion: Hey, what's up with my name?! It sounds weird!

Chibi-Sama: I'm unlucky. The guy who's Xbox I'm now using, because my friend Ark moved away, just died. Now I can't play L4D! Woe is me…

Ark: ?

Chibi-Sama: Sion was taken from the guy whose Xbox died, and Severent was just a random thought, I don't know what it means. I'm planning to release two special one-shots later about what Ark and Sion were doing before they met the survivors.

Ark: *Growling*

Sion: Oh yeah. Since I'm here now, we can start taking questions about the fanfic: story related, PG-13, please! If you want, you can email the director at with the subject relating either Ark or me. We'll try and answer as many questions as we can, but they will be answered on basis of story relationship. See you next chapter!

**


	8. Subway

Chapter 8: Subway

Disclaimer, I do not own L4D, Ark and Sion are MINE.

"_This is infected speak for clarity's sake."_

Okay, so my mood was really killed with the loss of one of my readers, I thought I had more talent than that. But I picked myself up with the knowledge that I can't write to everyone's enjoyment and that obviously the readers preferred style wasn't matching mine. No sense in moping, got to keep moving. I hope this chapter is more to everyone's tastes…

--

"So, what are you capable of?" asked Bill as the group, with their newest addition, sat in the room. Sion put his hand on his chin. "Well, I can lift things with my tongue." Zoey perked up. "That's a good start. What can you lift?" Sion looked around. "Tables and chairs, whatever isn't tied to the floor and handy, I guess. I also tend to react to movement pretty quickly. Though I'm sure Ark is much quicker when it comes to attacking." Ark puffed up proudly with the faint praise and kept walking as Sion continued. Sion continued to think. "I can- " He cut his sentence short as he shot his tongue out of his mouth, startling the Survivors. Whatever he had grabbed was much too strong for him, pulling him off his feet, where he hovered, moving about in a circular fashion.

Louis looked up. "I think you react a little too fast, Sion." Zoey agreed. "And I think the major difference between you and Ark is that Ark doesn't attack ceiling fans." "And lose to them." Added Francis. Sion narrowed his eyes at them. "Ha ha. Get me down. I think my tongue is stuck and I'm starting to get dizzy." Bill chuckled as Zoey got a chair and started to try and undo the tangled mess that had wrapped around the ceiling fan. Louis held Sion's feet to prevent him from knocking Zoey over. Ark stared at the ceiling fan, sighing.

Zoey struggled with the knot and occasionally wiped her hands on her jeans while she worked to untie Sion. Francis sat on another chair and waited impatiently, bouncing his foot up and down as the others struggled with the stubborn fan. The fan seemed determined to keep Sion a prisoner. Bill had long since found the light switch and turned the fan off, making Zoey's job of untying Sion much easier. She finally undid the knot and leaped off the chair, holding the end of Sion's tongue as a trophy. "Try not to attack rogue ceiling fans, okay?" she asked.

Sion nodded and began to retract his tongue into his mouth when Francis grabbed the other end. "I want to see something. I was always curious about this." He said, starting to pull on Sion's tongue. "Whoa, Hey! What are you doing?" whined Sion as Francis walked down the hallway from the room, still pulling. "I want to see how long it is," called Francis. "I always wondered exactly how far you bastards could stretch your tongues anyways." By the time Sion had begun to whine about this tongue starting to hurt, Francis was almost halfway down into the subway. Zoey walked from Sion, the starting point, out the room, down the hallway, out the doors, into the safe room, out of the safe room, down the smoking hole where the remains of Francis's kills lay, and next to Francis who was standing by the broken escalators before whistling. " That's a long way. " she commented. Bill looked out the door and walked with Louis to where Sion's tongue ended as well before motioning for Francis to let go of the tongue. Francis let go and the tongue slid back up the hole, through the safe house, back down the hallway, into the room where it slapped Sion in the face like a spaghetti noodle. "Ow!" he yelped. Ark pushed him out the door and followed Francis's scent "Hopeless." He muttered. Sion glared at Ark. "I'm not hopeless!"

Ark and Sion made their way into the safe house where the others were replenishing their ammunition and supplies. Ark sidled up next to Zoey, who patted him gently on the head and handed him a pistol. "I think you may need a weapon from now on, Ark. Our group keeps getting larger, and a gun will cover more distance than a pounce will sometimes." Ark shifted nervously from one foot to the other. The last time he had used a weapon was to kill a witch, and that was a shotgun. He was also uncomfortable with the idea of using a gun due to the fact that he didn't know whether or not he could aim carefully enough to avoid injuring one of the survivors. No need to give Francis any valid reasons to shoot him.

He accepted the gun anyways, tucking it into his sweatshirt for later, if at all, use. For obvious reasons, Sion didn't take a gun nor was one offered to him. He instead looked out the door and down into the flaming hole. "Aren't we going to rest for the night?" he asked. Bill reloaded his shotgun. "Francis cleared a path earlier; we have to take it while it's still clear." Louis nodded and crouched to get a better look at the giant hole in the ground. "Wow, that's a large hole. What do you think made it?" Francis leaped into the hole and landed safely on the ground below. "Nothing that I want to make friends with." Ark leaped over Francis and started to crawl ahead as Zoey leaped into the hole and helped Bill get down the hole. Louis was right behind them with Sion still inside the safe house, nervously pacing around in circles.

"Hey, Smoker! Ass in view or it gets blown off at the count of two!" snapped Francis. As Sion scrambled to catch up with the group Zoey muttered, "What happened to three?" before heading down the broken escalator. "Three is too long to count with these damn vampires everywhere." Replied Francis. "Zombies. " corrected Louis. "Whatever!" retorted Francis. Bill shuffled through the pile of rubble and stopped to glance at the car that had somehow gotten stuck down there with them.

_"Hungry food food prey kill eat food"_ came from above.

Ark and Sion looked up just in time to see a waterfall of infected come from another hole up above and attack. Ark completely ignored the gun and fought his way through the sea of infected as Sion screamed and ran about in circles, being next to useless, before tripping over a body. Looking next to him, he saw a dead infected and screamed loudly. Ark dodged around a rotting arm and grabbed his assailiant, throwing him several feet. Onto Francis. "Goddamn it, you stupid Hunter!" Francis yelled, trying to get out from under the infected. "Sorry!" Ark called. Sion continued to scream until the battle was over, with Bill slightly limping and Louis lying on the ground with Zoey trying to help him up. Ark's left arm was bleeding as he sat down for a minute to catch his breath.

"Where the hell were you?!" snapped Francis, glaring at Sion. Sion looked at the ground. "I'm sorry, it's normally been me avoiding battles as much as possible, not jumping into them. You can't really blame me for getting frightened." Zoey patted him on the shoulder. "It's okay. We weren't really expecting you to be used to fighting like Ark is. Don't worry about Francis; he's always been like this anyways." Sion cheered up immediately and ran ahead. "I'll go check things out ahead!" Ark finished stopping the blood flow and watched Sion eagerly run down the hall where the broken escalator was. He had a bad feeling he knew what was going to happen next, so he waited for Bill to finish healing himself before urging the Survivors down the hall after Sion.

"All clear! There isn't anything down here and- OH YUCK! THAT'S JUST NASTY, DAMMIT! AHH! GO AWAY!!!!" yelled Sion. Ark raced out the hall and ran smack into a Boomer that had just vomited on Sion and was trying to go for a second shot. Ark slugged it gently against the wall far enough for it to be shot by Louis while Francis took the time to go and help Sion who was rapidly being engulfed by infected. Zoey grabbed a Molotov from a table and lobbed it over Sion's head, clearing away the horde. Bullets mopped up any undead that were still there, on fire or not. "You are a bad luck charm." moaned Bill, grabbing a Molotov as well.

Sion cleaned his jacket off. "I'm sorry, I didn't pick up on his scent until he had vomited on me." Louis shrugged. "Happens to everyone sooner or later. How come you didn't hear him? He's kinda hard to not hear." Sion started to scratch his neck nervously. "Uh, seems that unlike Ark, I wasn't gifted with incredible smell or hearing. My sense of smell is about as good as you guys." Bill looked at the subway train that had tilted sideways. "We'll keep that in mind. Get moving." Ark pried open one of the crushed doors and the group headed inside, stepping around the bodies littered throughout the train. Few infected roamed the train itself, but that was a whole different story when they exited the train.

Almost instantly, another Smoker shot his tongue into the train and grabbed Louis, dragging him out of the train onto the rails. "No you don't!" yelled Sion, trying to help his friend. He and Ark grabbed onto the tongue and pulled it back, dragging the Smoker out of his hiding place and towards them. The Smoker attempted to pull back, looking like the victim of a losing tug of war game until Francis shot it, letting it explode into a cloud of foul smelling gas. Zoey laughed out loud. "That was cool! I didn't think of trying that! We gotta try tugging next time." Bill tried to hide his smile. "Hopefully there won't be a next time."

Ark stepped over the body of the smoker and waved his hand about, clearing the smoke from the air and kept walking. The faint smell of another Hunter wafted about, setting Ark into attack position. Crouching low to the ground, he continued to keep going up the empty parking lot, crawling on all fours. As the few infected that lounged about in the empty parking lot were killed, Bill and Zoey stayed close to Ark, who was sniffing ahead, looking for all the world like a bloodhound, letting him lead the way. Francis had his gun in Sion's spine, nudging him along like a hostage.

Sion held up his hands playfully, like he was under arrest, and kept walking while Louis walked next to him. Ark took a minute to enjoy a breath of fresh air as they entered a warehouse with machinery in it, including weapons and Molotov's. He sniffed around the room, trying to find an exit, sighing in disgust when he couldn't find one. Zoey pointed at the wall. "All we have to do is open up the gate and we'll have an exit. Only problem is that the really loud noise is an infected beacon for sure." Francis hoisted his shotgun into the air. "Let 'em come!" he shouted as Bill glared at him.

"Find a spot where you can fight before saying that. In a battle, location can mean everything." warned Bill.

Francis snorted. "Well then, I guess the safest place is behind me, then." Bill glared at him again as Louis rolled his eyes. "I say we take Bill's advice and try to set ourselves up so we don't get hurt when the infected come." he said. The sound of shifting gears snapped everyone's attention to the gate where Sion was standing next to the control panel. "What? I thought we were supposed to open it!" he exclaimed. "We weren't ready!" shouted the group.

Infected poured from the open doors and rushed the Survivors, screaming and moaning loudly. Zoey cried out in pain as a Hunter grabbed her by the ankle in mid pounce and twisted it, bringing her to the ground. He pinned her and started to tear at her clothes, ripping open her jacket and part of her shirt. "GET OFF OF HER!" roared Ark, lifting the Hunter by the collar and throwing him against the wall. As the Hunter crashed to the ground, his hood fell off, showing his face, if one could call it that anymore.

His face had become so mutated that the only thing that was even left was the eyes. Dried blood caked his face from his ripped out left eye and his remaining eye was glaring at Ark with malicious hate. Ark's eyes widened at the sight. It was the Hunter whose eye he had ripped out when he saved the Survivors on that rainy night. Screeching loudly, the Hunter lunged at Ark, grabbing onto his hood and pulling it off. Ark shook his head and leaped away from Zoey, trying to move the battle away from the Survivors. Louis ran over to Zoey and started to try and help her up, only to stop when she cried in pain while trying to put weight on her ankle. "I think it's sprained..." she whimpered as Ark and the Hunter rolled around fighting.

Bill finished killing the last infected and offered his arm to help Louis balance Zoey and help her walk, but was elbowed out of the way as Francis lifted Zoey off the ground. "Let someone younger than you take this job, old man." he said. Sion looked at the opening door before looking at Francis. "I notice you're doing an awful good job of examining her. We have to get going before something else shows up." At the angle Francis was carrying her; he was getting a pretty good view of her torn shirt.

"What about Ark?" asked Louis. Sion ducked under the opening gate. "He's a Hunter, and a large one at that. He'll be fine. But if we stick around here, we might get hurt and then he'll get mad." Francis ducked under the door as well, followed by Bill then Louis. Sion held the door open at the top of the stairs that opened out to the street and left it open while Francis carried Zoey. She protested about the arrangement but didn't complain too loudly.

Screeching was heard from above as the windows of the warehouse shattered, raining glass on the survivors. Ark was rolling about on a thin patch of the roof with the one eyed Hunter, both trying to tear each other's throats out. The Hunter kicked Ark off of him and off the roof, with Ark grabbing onto a park of the broken window ledge and dangling there. Placing his foot on the slick metal of the warehouse exterior, he managed to get a foothold on the metal and leaped again, knocking the other Hunter off the roof where he grabbed onto Ark's foot sending them both plummeting to the ground below.

Ark grabbed the Hunter's arm and twisted it until he heard a pop and an ear shattering screech before switching positions with the Hunter, slamming him into the concrete. As the dust settled, he grabbed the Hunter's neck and placed a hand on its head before twisting. After a satisfying crack, Ark looked up at the Survivors, who were standing there. Sion looked at the dead Hunter and whistled. "Damn, you're vicious." Ark stood up and stepped away from the Hunter and looked at Zoey worriedly.

Zoey squirmed in Francis's arms. "I'm all right, Ark. I just need to rest and I'll be good as new." She didn't want to tell him that the Hunter from earlier had sprained her ankle, he would probably beat himself up even more for not helping her earlier. Bill looked further down the street. "Just a few stragglers in front of the safe house, I think. Shouldn't be too far of a walk." Sion looked at the building. "Not if the Boomer gets us first. See him up there? He'll get whoever walks into that doorway." Everyone strained to look, but even Ark saw no sign of a Boomer, though he could smell it.

Sion pointed at the far away building. "See? He's over there!" The group looked at him with skeptical expressions until he grabbed a shotgun from Bill and aimed at the roof, firing off several shots. An explosion from the top of the building rocked the local area as Francis's jaw hit the street. Louis, the only one with a sniper rifle, looked through the scope and saw the lower half of the Boomer lying on the roof. "Good god, he actually got it." Sion smiled triumphantly and handed the shotgun back to Bill. "Let's get going."

Louis, still looking through the scope, turned pale as he continued to watch. "The Boomer… is falling…" as the lower part of the Boomer's corpse fell; it landed on a car, setting off the alarm.

"_Hungry food food prey kill eat FOOD!"_

"SION!"

"How was I supposed to know?!"

As the moans of the horde got even louder, Francis took a moment to glance at Zoey, who was still in his arms; there was no possible way to fight with her in his arms. Zoey looked back at him before squirming again. "Put me down." She said, pushing herself out of his arms. Francis tightened his grip on her and glared at Ark, who was on all fours and growling, before handing Zoey to him. Ark looked at Francis confused as Francis took up his pistols. "Take her to the safe house, we'll catch up."

Now Ark was really confused. Did Francis actually trust him not to try and eat Zoey? Not that he actually had any intentions of harming her. "Touch her in any inappropriate way and I'll kill you." Maybe not. Ark lifted Zoey onto his back and waited for her to grab onto his neck. "Wait, Ark, what are you- EEEEK!" she screamed as Ark leaped over the horde and ran on all fours to the safe house.

Sion watched Ark leap gracefully over the horde with his less than graceful passenger before turning to Francis. "Aren't we trying to be the big hero?" Francis stared at him. "Shut it, Smoker. And get ready. After all, we told them we'd catch up." Sion faced the crowd of infected bearing down upon them. "Well, can't keep a pretty lady waiting; we promised her."

"Bring it on, you stupid Vampires!"

"Zombies."

"WHATEVER!"

--

And I leave it there. I have a computer exam to study for so the next one might be a little on the late side.

Ark: _Mayo from the local neighborhood wants to ask; How does Sion talk with his tongue out of his mouth? Actually, I'm curious about that too._

Sion: Oh, that's easy! When I speak with my tongue out, my voice comes from lower than my throat, from my chest.

Ark: _I don't get it._

Sion: neither do I actually. I highly doubt Chibi knows either.

Chibi: Ya caught me. That's right readers, I DON'T KNOW. He just does.

Sion: Okay, Jan from the neighborhood wants to know; How far can Ark pounce?

Okay, I'm no Hunter, so that question goes to Ark.

Ark: _About 20 feet. I think. Never really tried measuring distances._

Sion: You don't have to; if you land on someone then obviously you got him!

By the way, I can stretch my tongue about 60 feet if I really tried.

Chibi: I guess distance makes up for your lack off gray matter in your skull.

Sion: HEY!

Chibi: and to clarify on the Apocalypse Sundae:

The Tank is the banana because that is the largest topping that I could pawn outta my friends.

The Syrup is the Smoker's tongue

The chocolate chips are the Witch because whenever I make a sundae, they tend to hide.

The chocolate covering is Boomer Vomit, duh.

And the Cherries are Hunters because they usually jump on top of you, like the cherries on top of a sundae.

CIAO!


	9. Horde

Chapter 9: Horde

Disclaimer: I do not own L4D… I wish I did… WRRRYYY!

Reviews, reviews. So many to look at and not enough time to answer them all. And with the threat of Swine Flu, my whole family's on edge. Lucky me.

I know someone's been saying my chapters are too short but because I have school to attend, I have to make the chapters short in order to update weekly like this.

Between me and the spellcheck, I still can't get every spelling error so please bear with me on this habit.

Again, "_This is the Infected speak"_

--

Ark gently laid Zoey on the floor of the safe house as gunfire and shouting could be heard from the outside. She reached for her pistol and gently nudged Ark towards the door. "Go help them. They need you more than I do right now," she said. He shook his head violently and sat right next to her. He had no intentions of leaving her alone in the safe house, even with the other survivors and the idiot that set off the alarm in the first place outside. She nudged him again, this time with more force in her voice. "GO, Ark. I'll be fine. See? I've got my pistol; it'll take more than a few infected to kill me."

Ark hurried to the door and nervously paced back and forth for a few seconds before opening it to go back outside. He opened the door so fast that he pulled Sion, who was trying to open the door from the other side, off his feet. "Ow...shoulda known that door would open like that..." he mumbled. Ark glared at him._ "What are you doing here? Where are the others?" _Sion rubbed his nose. "Behind me, and so is the horde!" Ark grabbed Sion's collar, slammed the door shut and stormed to meet the horde. "Wait, what are you doing?!" cried Sion as Ark dragged him out the building towards the horde.

Bill and Louis were running their way and stopped to talk to Ark. "Is Zoey okay?" asked Louis. Ark nodded and then looked around. "Francis?" he asked. Bill pointed behind him.

"Commando back there insisted on fighting, so we went to go get you." Ark dropped Sion and crouched before leaping over Bill towards the horde. Francis was aggressively beating away some of the infected as Ark landed on one, crushing its skull. "Help?" asked Ark, standing upright. Francis reloaded his weapon. "I thought you'd never get here, you slow-ass Hunter."

Ark cracked his knuckles and socked an infected in the jaw before swiping at another one, severing head from body. Turning on his heel, he brought up his other leg and felt it connect with another infected. He followed up with a fist and continued to battle infected. Sion ducked as an infected flew at his head and snapped back up, yelling. "Watch where you're throwing your- hey!" he ducked again as Ark tossed another infected. A Smoker wrapped his tongue around Sion's neck but was rather surprised when Sion wrapped his tongue around the other Smoker's neck, both of them pulling. Sion dug his feet into the ground and pulled as hard as he could.

Sion's tongue snapped back into his face when the other Smoker's neck snapped, releasing him. "Huh, easier than I thought." He said, straightening his coat. He pulled his tongue back into his mouth but stuck it back out when he tasted the Smoker's blood. "Yuck!" he complained, wiping his tongue off. Ark glared at him. _"Will you DO __SOMETHING?!"_ he glared at him with crimson eyes before returning to sock another infected. Sion threw up his arms. "What do you want me to do?!" he snapped back.

Ark stopped fighting long enough to throw him the gun that Zoey had given him. "Use it!" he ordered. Sion picked up the gun from the ground and started firing, every shot hitting in the head. Francis, Bill, and Louis were out of the immediate danger zone; it was time to mop up the few remaining infected. Ark throttled the last few remaining infected and took a moment to catch his breath, his eyes fading from crimson to blue. Sion took a moment to catch his breath as well, reloading the pistol as his dog tags jangled loudly. A Hunter screeched as it landed on Sion who held up his arm protectively. The Hunter tore at his arms and then leaped away from him when Francis shot at it, leaping onto the wall and climbing onto the roof.

Ark raced after it, chasing it off the roof and back onto the street where the two chased each other around in circles. It would have been funny if they weren't trying to kill each other. Sion lowered his arm and opened his eyes. "Hey! My coats damaged! You stupid Hunter-" his sentence trailed off as his eyes focused on his wrist, the one that had the dog tags wrapped tightly on it. The tags jangled as they hung from the jaws of the rogue Hunter, having been ripped from Sion's wrist. Louis shot at the Hunter and cursed when he missed as Sion's eyes remained focused on his wrist.

"GIVE THAT BACK!" he yelled, aiming the pistol at the Hunter. Three shots later, the Hunter lay on the ground in an awkward position, blood oozing from the hole in his forehead. All of the shots fired by Sion had hit the same spot, dead center between the eyes. Eyes golden in color, he made sure the Hunter was dead before removing the tags and cleaning them off. He tied them around his wrist again and put the gun in his pocket.

Turning to them, he nodded his head in the direction of the safe house. "We should go. She's waiting for all of us." Ark stood up and walked with Sion into the safe house, leaving the door open for Francis, Bill, and Louis. Bill was impressed by Sion's marksmanship, but Francis was far from impressed. He kept his eye on Sion's hands, watching to see what Sion would do next. In the safe house, Zoey eagerly greeted them from her spot on the floor. Louis returned the greeting and sat to work examining her leg. He gently took her ankle in his hands and pushed it to the right. "Does this hurt?" he asked. She shook her head no. He then pushed it to the left and stopped when she tensed.

"I can make a brace for you if you want," he began, looking for materials. "Though I don't know if you'll be able to walk with it." She nodded. "Anything will do, Louis. Thank you." Louis found some wood and got to work. Bill lit a cigarette and then groaned in annoyance when he realized that was his last cigarette. "Hey, you can have one of mine," offered Sion, holding an unopened pack. "A Man's gotta smoke," agreed Bill, accepting the pack.

Francis started to look in some of the boxes littering the room and opened them. "Food. Guns. Ammo. Medicine. The usual works." Sion sat with Ark and smoked as well, as Louis told Zoey what had happened while she was in the safe house. Zoey was very happy that they were all right and affectionately patted Ark on the head for a job well done. All of a sudden, Francis's yell could be heard from the back of the safe house; "OH MY GOD!" Ark and Sion bolted upright and into fighting positions while Louis, Bill, and Zoey dropped everything. "WHAT?" they all yelled in unison.

"Beer!" he sang, cradling a bottle in his arms. Bill threw an empty cardboard box at him.

"Don't scare us like that, damnit!" Zoey breathed a sigh of relief and put her pistol down. "That's great, Francis. Help yourself." She said, with a small air of sarcasm. Louis wrapped some tape around the newly made splint on her leg as Francis doled out the beer to anyone who asked.

1 Hour Later…

"And then I poked a Witch with my tongue just to see what happened, and boy, did she chase me everywhere! I thought I'd never get away!" laughed Sion, downing another beer. Francis slapped his knee as he laughed loudly. " I got one for you!" he began. "Back when all this mess started, I went solo for a little while, shooting up some of the local infected when I found the strangest thing! A Zombie with his head stuck in a pot! Isn't that the strangest thing? Looking back on it now, I realize that dumb zombie was a Hunter! Can you believe it?! A goddamn Hunter with his head stuck in a pot!" Francis and Sion roared with laughter and opened another beer.

Ark lay face down on the ground, whimpering. He was definitely not an alcohol drinker; Sion forced him to drink one beer and he passed out. Zoey patted him on the head as he whimpered like a beaten dog. Louis refrained from drinking even though Francis had said that there was enough to go around, and Bill had one before quietly excusing himself from the party to sit in the corner. Sion, on the other hand, had gotten overwhelmingly drunk, even to the point where he and Francis, who was equally smashed, were laughing like they had known each other forever. Between the two of them, they had already drunk 16 beers out of the 24 cases. Sion had more than Francis, though.

Zoey rolled her eyes away from the rambunctious party and focused on trying to put weight onto her leg. She could stand on it, but not much else. When she tried to walk; she would get a few feet before she had to rest. Louis put is hand on his chin. "How are we going to reach the hospital with Zoey in this condition?" Bill looked at the brace. "A good idea would be to have one of us carry her at a time, but what would we do if we ran into a special infected like a Tank?" Zoey looked like she wanted to say something but chose not to. She wanted to tell them to leave her behind, but she knew they'd sooner try to tame a Tank with a feather before that happened.

Ultimately, they decided after much confusion and arguing, they chose to put their trust in their new companion Sion and give him permission to use guns. Zoey would be carried by Bill, Francis, or Louis while everyone available would focus on protecting the group while they made their way to the hospital. Ark would use his nose to try and find the safest route through the sewers. However…

When morning rolled around, Francis and Sion were experiencing terrible hangover. Ark had a hangover as well, but not nearly as severe. Louis carried Zoey when they left the safe house, his gun now resting in Sion's pocket as the hung-over Smoker swayed back and forth. Ark walked on all fours and occasionally had to rest against the wall after crashing into it. Francis was swaying as well, he often stopped to try and let his headache subside.

Luckily, infected were few and easily handled. Bill had a grand time shooting at them; Francis covered his ears every time. "Not so loouuud…" complained Francis after one such shooting. Bill paid him no mind and continued to fire at infected, using more rounds than necessary. The path through the sewers were littered with infected as well as some of the special ones. Bill made as much noise as possible so as to attract every infected in the local vicinity for his revenge against Francis. Firing as many rounds as possible, Bill took immense pleasure in listening to Francis's pitiful moans of "Knock it off..." Yes, a Man hung over is truly one to be pitied. Especially when there is a person all too willing to exact revenge nearby.

Zoey helped out the best she could from her position upon Louis's shoulders, picking off any infected who attacked from behind. She was using a pistol so she wouldn't burden louis by carrying a heavier gun. A loud roar from in front of them sent Bill and Louis retreating as a tank rushed through a group of infected trying to get them. Francis and Sion just stared at the Tank lazily until the Tank threw a rock at them. Both dodged out of the way, Sion clutching his head from the pounding headache.

The Tank roared again and was silenced by several rounds of gunfire plus a powerful punch from a hung-over Human, Smoker, and Hunter. "You're too LOUD!" all three of them snapped in unison. Bill's jaw dropped as the Tank fell forward into the murky waters, never to rise again. "I have nothing to say on this matter whatsoever." he said, lifting his hands above his head. Zoey chuckled to herself. "I told you guys not to drink so much," she told them. "I don't want to hear it right now." moaned Francis. Louis looked at him and shook his head. " Hangovers: No good time goes unpunished." he commented. Sion covered his ears. " I get it, I get it. Stop speaking." he whined. Ark pulled his hood over his face and continued to sniff out the right route to the hospital, stepping around the dead Tank.

After a few minutes, Ark had picked out the clear scent of fresh air from the exit and began to lead the Survivors in that direction. Bill was now carrying Zoey and Louis was alert and ready to shoot anything that moved. Francis had finally recovered from his headache and took up his weapon, adding his gunfire to the fight. Sion took on anything that came near him but preferred to let anything that was too far go past him. When they reached the ladder that would take them up out of the sewers, Ark went up first to scout. Opening up the man hole, he was caught off guard as a clawed hand grabbed his hood and ripped him out of the man hole.

Grabbing the attacker's arm, he used it for a springboard and leaped over his attacker. "Don't come up!" he called as he leaped away from a wild swipe. As the claws swiped at his mid section again, he side stepped his opponent and tripped him. Looking down, he sighed when he realized it was another Hunter. Don't they know when to give up? He reached down to end this Hunter's misery when another Hunter pounced on him unguarded back. Ripping him off, Ark realized he was surrounded by Hunters.

"They must have formed a temporary truce for food." Ark mused as he pulled his hood back onto his face from where it had been ripped off. "And you owe me a new sweater." he growled, pointing at the lead Hunter. In the sewer below, Francis and Louis were trying to stop Zoey from climbing the ladder to see what was going on. "He said not to come up!" yelled Louis as he tugged on Zoey's sweater. By accident, he undid the knot she tied in her sweater to compensate for it being ripped. She slapped Francis, who covered his cheek. "What did **I** do? He did it!" he yelled. Zoey covered her open shirt. " I know, but I couldn't bring myself to slap him. You were the next best thing." Bill restrained from laughing and instead focused on the screeching from above.

Sion grabbed onto the ladder and started to climb up."I'll go check it out." He poked his head out of the man hole. "Hey, Ark, What's-WHOA!" he ducked as a Hunter lunged at him. Ark, above, panted as he tore a Hunter's arm off and used it to be the daylights out of it. He had counted at least 20 Hunters in the local area and so far he had only killed 8 of them. He whirled when he heard Sion called his name and watched a Hunter leap at the open man hole in what could be considered a game of grab-a-Smoker. The Hunter would wait for Sion to drop his guard and poke his head up before leaping at him and growling in frustration when it missed.

Sion chanced poking his head up again and heard a low growl before ducking back under." I wouldn't suppose any of you have a bomb, would you?" he asked, clinging to the ladder. Bill put his hands on his hips." I have a pipe bomb, but Hunters don't seem to follow it." Sion sighed before trying again to reach the surface and offer assistance to Ark. Ark jumped out of the way of a leaping Hunter before bringing his fist down on its skull. Turning to the left, he avoided another leap and growled aggressively at the remaining Hunters.

The growl was more of a warning; his strength was beginning to wane. He was used to long battles before, but against at least 20 of his kind, he was beginning to get worn out from dodging. He knew if he could get rid of the Hunter by the man hole, Sion and the others would be able to come up and help him. Ark turned to face the man hole, claws at the ready. He froze though; a Boomer stood between him and the other Hunter. The Boomer seemed less interested in him and more interested in the Survivors.

Sion snaked his tongue out of the man hole and smiled in triumph when he felt it wrap around the Hunter's neck; he had timed it just right. Retracting his tongue, he dragged the Hunter screeching into the man hole where Bill, Louis, Zoey,and Francis were waiting. The Hunter was killed in a brutal fashion as its screeches echoed throughout the sewers."All right! Now to go see if Ark's okay!" cheered Sion, climbing back up the ladder. His cheers were short lived as the Boomer vomited down the man hole onto him.

"WHAT THE TANK?! WHY ME?!" screamed Sion as he tried to clear his eyes. Infected came at them from the darkest parts of the sewers screaming_ "Hungry prey food kill eat food kill!"_ as Sion struggled to clean himself off. Bill tossed a pipe bomb over the horde, causing them to change directions as he smiled triumphantly. "That should keep them busy." he grinned as the infected chased the beeping device."Now let's go check on Ark."

Louis nudged Sion out of the way and climbed the ladder out of the sewers, Zoey following behind him. Francis was next, then Sion, and finally Bill. Zoey gasped when she saw the sight that lay in front of them.

Ark stood in the middle of the street, panting heavily as blood oozed from a slash across his stomach. One of his arms hung limply at his side and his left eye was covered in blood. Even more amazing than the condition of their companion was the condition of the area. Hunter remains lay everywhere, from the hands to the legs, and even a few heads. It was hard to tell if that section of the street had even been gray concrete at one point for it was painted a lovely red. "What the hell happened here?" asked Bill, nudging a Hunter's arm. Ark looked at them through his crimson right eye."Ambush."

The last Hunter screeched from its place on a nearby roof and bounded away as Sion shot at it, its screeches cutting through the air. _"Traitor..."_

_--_

Next chapter, they WILL make it to the hospital. I promise!

Chibi: Huh. I got some questions from my friends at school. How weird, I thought they didn't read my fanfiction. Well, here goes. To you, Ark.

Ark:_ From Manuel at school: Why does Ark's eyes glow red occasionally?That's easy. My eyes glow red when I'm agitated._

Sion: Here's one from Brandon. Does Ark actually wear his hood? Hey! How come there are no questions about me?!

Ark:_ You've only been around for a few chapters and no one is really used to you yet. I do wear my hood, but only when I'm fighting, to keep blood from getting into my hair. If I get my hair covered in blood, Zoey will give me another bath and I don't want that... When I'm just walking around or in the safe house, my hood is not on._

Chibi: Anyways, I have to go prepare for the weekend. So, I'll see you next chapter! Thanks for reading this far! I'll get to any emails I recieve.


	10. Hospital

Chapter 10: Hospital

Disclaimer :I do not own L4D. I do own Ark and Sion

Finally! 10 Chapters! Yay me!

Well, I finally got them to the hospital. Enjoy! The Survivors have made it to the Hospital, meaning that the Race for the Helicopter isn't far off! I hope I can do this right. I'm hoping to become a Beta Reader soon. I hope…

Check out my profile photo! It's a picture of Ark that my sister was kind enough to draw for me!

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Ark raised his one good arm and lifted his torn hood. His vision was swimming almost as much as when Sion had made him drink the beer earlier. He took a few steps forward before teetering and falling. Francis reached out and caught him. "Whoa, Don't go falling in the street like that. Might get hurt." he said, offering to support Ark. Sion looked away. "For once, you're not trying to be an ass. Guess it is really the Apocalypse." Francis shot him a glare and helped Ark over to a vehicle that didn't have an alarm. Ark rested against the hood of the vehicle as Sion ran his fingers over his sweater and his arms, surveying the damage.

"As far as I can tell, your stomach injury isn't deep, and your arm is numb. Movement should return momentarily, but the stomach needs treatment. Plus a head injury which could lead to temporary unconsciousness later, not to mention you need to replace your sweatshirt; It looks like a Tank stepped on it." said Sion, stepping away and cleaning his hands from the blood. _"There were enough Hunters to equal a Tank." _grumbled Ark. Bill pointed in the direction of the hospital. "Don't worry, there should be a store inside the hospital. I'm sure that we can find another sweatshirt in there. We should get moving before a real tank shows up, though."

The whole group agreed unanimously and started to walk; Bill carrying Zoey and Sion supporting Ark. "We are so screwed if anything stronger than a normal infected shows up right now." muttered Louis, walking ahead. Francis agreed with him silently. After a few minutes, Ark was able to walk on his own without support and he joined Francis in guarding the group. Sion took up his pistol again and walked with him, eyes scanning the rooftops. "How's your arm?" asked Louis, glancing at Ark's arm. Ark stared back at him. "Can't move."

Francis looked up at the sky. "I hate this. No idea what's going to happen next. " "What don't you hate?" groaned the group. Zoey wriggled to get a better look at the group from Bill's shoulder. "It's too quiet out here." she said. Bill looked up at her. "What, you want one of us to tell a story or something? Forget it. We all told our stories back when we met. The only ones who haven't said anything are the two over there." Sion heard the statement and turned nervously to Ark. "Uh, I-I'm new here so I don't know how to do this. Ark, you want to set a good example for me?" Ark lowered his eyes at him. _"Don't have anything to talk about? All right. I'll tell a story." _

Louis looked at the two of them. "Uh, Ark? We can't understand a word you're saying." Sion turned to him. "Don't worry, I'll translate for you." Ark nodded in approval before looking up at the sky. _"Let's see, before I met you guys, huh? Okay. Before I met you guys, I roamed the streets...battle crazy. I took on Smokers, Boomers, and other Hunters for the thrill of the fight. I wanted to feel my blood rush in the excitement of a life or death battle. I would take on anyone who was within reach. Those were some rough days; I'm surprised that my limbs and eyes are still intact. Anyways, I got bored of destroying the local infected so I took to sleeping during the daytime; the time when infected are somewhat less active. After a while, I was practically a night-walker. Then the first group came..."_

"First group?" asked Francis. Ark nodded. _"There were only four of them, just like you. But it was two women and two men. The men wore coats like Sion's, and the women wore white coats that hung down to their knees. I had no interest in attacking them; they were armed and didn't look like an easy kill. One of the men was always saying that the group should leave but he was always ignored. They were so lacking in any kind of teamwork, I figured they would be killed soon enough. Sure enough, two of them died from a Tank while the third one died from his injuries." _Sion stopped translating at that sentence and looked down at the ground, refusing to make eye contact with anyone.

Zoey looked at Sion. "Are you alright?" Sion looked up at her. "I'm okay. I was just thinking about something. Ark, what happened to the last person?" Ark shrugged his one arm. _"I never found out if she escaped or was killed. I'm guessing it was the last one though." _Louis looked ahead, partially to escape the conversation. "Hey guys, here's the hospital. Time sure does fly when you're not paying attention. Let's get inside." Francis pushed open the doors and the group walked past the receptionist's deck. A few infected, dressed as nurses, were no match for the group as they cleared out a room full of equipment and set Zoey down on one of the beds.

Bill dug out one of the braces and helped fasten it around Zoey's ankle while Francis stood guard. Louis tugged at Ark's sweatshirt, trying to pull it off while Sion was wrapping a bandage around Ark's head. After a moment, the sweatshirt came off and Louis set to work treating Ark's stomach. _"I think other Infected aim for my stomach on purpose." _commented Ark. Sion nodded in agreement and got up. "Let me see your back to see if the Hunter's claws pierced through" "We'd know it if those Hunters had torn through his stomach." called Francis from his guard post. "How?" asked Sion, moving a chair to get to the back of the bed. "Because we would had to have carried him here as well." was the reply.

Sion got behind the bed and examined Ark's back. "Okay it didn't go through, but... what are these weird things?" he asked. "What things?" asked Ark, craning his neck to look at his shoulder. Sion placed a hand on Ark's numb shoulder. "These quill-like things. They're not very large, but they're stuck in your shoulder. Should I pull them out?" "What do you think?" retorted Zoey, stiffening from the brace. Sion gently grabbed onto one of the quills and started to pull, Ark tensing when the quill came out. The quill, only a few inches in size, was coated in a red liquid similar to blood. He pulled all three quills out and then gave them to Bill for inspecting.

Bill ran a finger over the quill and examined it closely. "I don't think it's blood, but it could be." he stated. Ark sniffed the quill. "Not mine." Zoey took one of the quills in her hand. "What if it's poisonous?" she said. Francis looked at her from his spot. "Poisonous?" She turned the quill over in her hands, careful not to touch the liquid. "Some animals in the world like to use their bites and other methods to poison prey then simply wait for the prey to die or become to weak to fight before coming in for the kill." Sion looked at Ark's shoulder. "If it is poison, then how do we remove it before it gets worse?" Zoey looked at a nearby cabinet. "We're in a hospital. I'm sure we'll find something." she said. "Will painkillers do?" asked Louis, holding a bottle. Zoey took the bottle from him. "I don't know if that will help, but we can try them."

Ark looked unsure about the medicine and tried to avoid it. Sion picked up the bottle and started to read the back. When he got to the ingredients, he put the bottle down and pushed it away. "_No wonder you don't want this stuff."_He muttered to Ark. Zoey shuffled through the cabinet, searching for something else that they could give Ark when she stumbled upon some of the antidotes that they make for snakebites. "How about this?" she asked holding one of the vials up. "We could try to make an antidote with the liquid from the quills!"

"Uh, I don't think that's a good idea…" began Sion. A loud moan from outside made everyone look up. Francis lifted his gun. "No time for anything right now, we've got company." Infected rushed into the room and attacked the survivors, not realizing that they just made the worst possible mistake of attacking a person in a room full of medical tools. Sion grabbed a syringe and used it to pierce and infected's skull before jamming it into another's arm. Ark kicked one infected and then threw a monitor at one that was entering the room, nailing it. Movement was starting to return to his arm, meaning that the quill was not lethal in terms of poison, but it was still very slow compared to his normal arm.

Louis grabbed a saw, used for surgery, from the floor and shoved it into an infected as Francis opened fire on the infected that Zoey missed. As the group settled down from the fight, Zoey hopped off the bed and tested the brace. She would have to go very slowly, but she would be able to walk on her own if she really tried. Still, she allowed Francis to pick her up because she knew that they had to keep moving. Down the hallway, Ark tensed as the sounds of the infected began to die down. He lifted his hood and began to sniff the air cautiously. Cigarettes, both Bill and Sion's, shampoo from Zoey, and the faint smell of liquor from Francis. He also smelled infected. A lot of infected. The trip to the roof was not going to be an easy one.

"_Hee Hee Hee Hee Hee…" _laughed a voice from nearby, out of sight. Ark lowered himself to the ground and crawled away from the survivors, exiting out a door. Sion took the hint and walked away, closing the door behind him. Francis watched the two leave and yelled at them both. "Where do you two think you are going?" he demanded. Sion turned to him. "Quiet. There's a Screamer here. We're going to kill him before he raises the alarm." Remembering their first encounter with a Screamer, Francis shut his mouth and waited with the others.

Ark sniffed the air and crawled to the left of him, out another door, searching for the Screamer, as Sion opened every nearby door with his tongue at the ready. A few minutes passed with neither of them finding anything but each other multiple times. Sion sighed as he stretched on the chair. _"Where the Tank is that stupid Screamer anyways? I've opened every door in here and even smashed a few."_He grumbled. Ark leaped up onto the couch to be at eye level with Sion. _"I couldn't find him either. How hard is it to find them anyways?" _he asked. Sion took a drag on his cigarette. "Well, considering that we searched every room nearby without startling the Screamer and straying too far from the survivors, I can definitely say that he's not around here."

Ark looked at the wall which had the blood of earlier infected ambushes sprayed on it. _"We should go back to the group for now. If the Screamer is still here, we'll stand better odds in a group."_Sion picked himself up from the chair and headed back to the location of the group, Ark crawling behind him. When they reached the room where the others were, Zoey looked at them curiously. "Did you find the Screamer?" she asked. Ark shook his head while Sion put a hand on his hip. "He's still around here somewhere. I just know we're going to find him sooner or later."

He sat on the bed next to Zoey. "Anyways, what are we going to do when we reach the encampment with the other survivors?" he asked. The Survivors tensed. All of them knew it had come down to this. How on earth would they tell Ark and Sion that they couldn't take them with them? Or that even if they did, how would they get them past the military guard that was keeping an eye out for the infected at every entrance? Bill remained silent while Zoey avoided eye contact with Ark and Sion. Francis said nothing except for cleaning his gun and Louis was suddenly interested in nearby medical charts.

Sion apparently didn't pick up on the sudden discomfort in the room because he was eagerly chatting away with Ark about what they were going to do when they reached the encampment. _"I'm going to have a ton of beer and I'm sure there'll be plenty of Hamburgers for you, Ark! Even more than a fast food restaurant I bet!"_Ark nodded eagerly and drooled at the laughed nervously and started to pray that something would happen before Sion and Ark noticed the lack of conversation.

"SCCCCRRREEEECCCCCHHHHHH!!!!!" Zoey hated it when she got her wish. The Screamer had noticed them and was now hurtling through the Hospital at breakneck speed, screeching loudly. Ark bounded after the Screamer, leaping over the approaching horde and chasing it through the Hospital. Sion looked at the oncoming horde. "Here we go…" he muttered. He shot his tongue out of his mouth and wrapped it around the head of the horde and lifted the infected off of its feet. He then flicked his tongue slightly, using the struggling infected for a battering ram, temporarily stopping the horde. Zoey and the others took their positions and started to battle the horde.

Ark leaped over a steaming pipe and ducked under another one as he chased the Screamer through the darker parts of the Hospital. Infected were not as common down there, but they were still there and acting as the local nuisances. Ark wasted no time in liberating the infected's heads from their bodies as he struggled to keep the Screamer in sight. The Screamer then made a poor choice by turning onto a dead end and turned around wildly when it heard Ark's angry growl. Rather than scream desperately and try to call some infected before Ark killed it out of frustration, it crouched on the ground with its head buried in its knees. Confused, Ark crept closer to the Screamer, ready to fight.

"_Sniff…Sniff…Waaaahhh…" _cried the Screamer. Now Ark was really confused. He crept even closer to the Screamer and put a clawed hand on its shoulder. The Screamer tensed and tried to move away from Ark, moving into a small patch of light from above. This Screamer could have been compared to a child around the age of nine. His messy red hair hung down his face and was desperately in need of a haircut. Tear streaks ran down his face as he continued to sniffle, staring at Ark through glassy aqua colored eyes.

Ark stared at the Screamer stupidly. What were the odds of finding a Screamer that looked normal? The Screamer stared at him, still crying, as he lifted part of his arm to wipe at his eyes. The belts confining his arms as an asylum patient had long since been cut; allowing free movement and the usual white of the clothes were stained with tears. Ark looked around, muttering "Now what?"

He was lost from the Survivors, lost in the hospital from chasing a Screamer through it, about to try and kill the Screamer, and probably would have felt like a total scumbag for doing so. He just couldn't bring himself to kill something that was crying that much. _"Why did you scream earlier?" _Ark asked, kneeling to the Screamer's eye level. _"The man… He scared me." _answered the Screamer. Ark didn't feel the need to ask which man had terrified him.

"_Well, since you so kindly alerted the locals to our presence, I'm now separated from my group and it'll take me forever to find them, even though I can follow their scents." _Ark grumbled. The Screamer dropped his eyes. _"I'm sorry…Sniff…" _he started to cry again. Ark rolled his eyes. This Screamer was more of a coward than Sion was and was more prone to crying than a Witch! _"Look, I'm sorry that Francis scared you but I have to go back to my group."_ He said, starting to leave the room. The Screamer stood up and wiped his face again, his other sleeve hanging to the floor.

"_They're looking for you."_he told Ark. Ark started to walk faster as the Screamer looked up at the light coming from above._ "I can hear them calling for you." _he added. Ark followed his nose and ignored the Screamer, aware that the child-Screamer was still following him. After a few minutes, Ark whirled around to look at the Screamer. _"Will you stop FOLLOWING ME?!"_he snapped. The Screamers eyes started to tear up again and Ark sighed. "Zoey and the others are going to love this one." He muttered, lifting the Screamer. Looking at his clothes, Ark made out part of the medical status of the child that had once existed: Presumed INSANE.

Who ever had written the note had done it hastily though, the words insane looked more like 'Inzane.' he continued to stare at the letters for a few moments before he played around with the letters. "Zane." He whispered. The Screamer looked at him. _"Huh?" _Ark shifted the Screamer to his other shoulder. _"That's your name now. Zane." _Zane wriggled about as Ark caught up with the Survivors and dropped Zane on the floor. "Found the problem." He told Zoey and the others. Sion's jaw dropped. "You found a Screamer?!" he said in disbelief. Francis was equally stunned. "And you had to bring it back?" Zoey slapped her forehead in disbelief. First it was her and now Ark was adopting special Infected! Francis glared at her while mouthing "You started this."

Ark felt that while keeping Zane would be a huge nuisance to the group, he wouldn't have been able to live with the guilt of having abandoned him. Which meant, at least for now, Ark was Zane's big brother. Zane seemed to have no problem with the arrangement; he was eagerly running around Sion and the group like a child that had been given a pet. _"You brought a Screamer and you want to KEEP him?! Have you gone off the deep end, Ark?" _Sion asked. Ark narrowed his eyes slightly._"You know, I could have been considered as having 'gone off the deep end' when we allowed you to go with us." _he retorted. Sion shut his mouth and instead gently patted Zane on the head. "You need a haircut, kiddo."

Zane gave a sharp-toothed grin to Sion and then hugged Ark's waist. He also hugged Zoey as well, making her give a form of 'the puppy eyes' to Francis and the others. Frnacis and Bill rolled their eys and sighed while Louis shook his head. Having danger-prone Sion was bad enough, now they gotta put up with this brat? Luckily, the helicopter is on the roof of this godawful building. Zane perked up while hugging Zoey. _"I hear a tongue-user!" _he mentioned.

Try as he might, Ark couldn't hear anything but the Survivors' nervous whispers. Sion cupped a hand to his ear as well, straining to hear. "Nope, can't hear a thing." Zoey put a hand on Zane's head. "It's Zane's ability. I'm betting we will run into a Smoker sooner or later." she told them. Louis looked at her. "Ability?" Zoey took her hand off of Zane's head.

"Yeah. I'm going out on a limb here, but I think that each of the Special Infected in this group has a unique sense. Ark's is smell, Sion's is sight, and Zane's is hearing. That would defienetly explain why whenever Sion fires a gun, it's always a headshot. Ark can smell an opponent long before he can see them and Zane can hear an Infected before it even knows we're here. It fits." Francis and Louis agreed with her while Bill nodded in approval. "It's great that we finally managed to make some headway on the Infected mystery, but we can talk science while climbing stairs." Zoey looked around. "Oh, sorry."

Sion carried Zoey while Zane eagerly raced around the group, pelting them with questions. It hadn't clicked on him yet that he wasn't speaking their language. Eventually Ark reigned him in and scolded him for annoying the Survivors like an old man. Louis and Francis hung back and talked for awhile. "We wound up with another one, how are we going to get rid of them before the Helicopter picks us up?" asked Louis. Francis stroked his chin. "I don't really know. The kid we can get rid of easily because we just met him and don't know him too well. But the other two have become attached and probably won't let go so easily." Louis hung his head in agreement. "I feel really bad about this, but we really can't take them with us, no matter how many times they've saved us."

Zane held Ark's hand and stared back at the two before looking up at Ark. _"Have you been with them long?" _he asked. Ark nodded. _"For a long time, actually. I saved their life many time and they've saved mine." _Zane looked at the ground. _"Have you thought about what you're going to do when you leave?" _Ark looked at him. _"I'm going with them to the Survivor encampment. So is Sion." _Zane looked back at Francis and Louis, who were still discussing on how they were possibly going to lose Ark and Sion, and then looked back to the ground. _"I'm not so sure about that,"_ he thought. _"But I've got my own plans for what's going to happen next, so this is going to be fun, to say the least."_

--

Yeah, About Zane. He was designed before the "rare" Witch character, So I decided to introduce him first. He has changed a lot from his original design, from a Man, like as the picture on youtube indicated, to a small child. I wanted to have a small child-like character, but I didn't feel like trying to come up with a semi-plausible reason as to why a small child was still alive in the city of infected, so I created Zane the Screamer. Seems like Zane has his own ideas for the hospital finale so stick around for the battle, it's gonna be a wild one.

By the way, for some loyal readers, the story doesn't end at the Hospital. That's all I'm saying on the subject.

Ark: _We've got some internet questions finally, so we decided to answer them as best as we can without spoiling anything._

Zane: _... ..._

Sion: Here's one from Glasscase of Emotions. "How is Sion's eyesight so damn advanced when his ability is with his tongue?" this one goes to the director.

Chibi: Based on when I play L4D, I noticed that Smoker's can get you from really long distances, and decided to make Sion with the capacity to see even further than the average Smoker. Ark's sense of smell is based on the fact that Hunter's may often attack you before they even see you. I have had it happen to me.

Sion: Here's one from Neo-Kira. " Do you ever wish you had a Tank buddy to help you?"

Help me with what?

And the second part is "Ark, have you ever tried Hot Sauce?"

Ark: _If I can put it on a hamburger, I'll try it!_

Chibi: Here's a question from my cousin, of all things. "Why does Sion say, "What the Tank?" whenever something bad happens?"

Sion: I say it, because the Tank is the worst thing that possibly come after you in this city.

At least I hope it's the worst thing.

Zane: _Who knows? Hee hee hee hee hee..._

Sion: Okay, the new guy's scaring me.

Chibi: He should be, I'm going to be stressed with the next few chapters. Anyways, I hope you enoyed this chapter because there are more to come, THE STORY DOES NOT END AT THE HOSPITAL! for those of you waiting for the "rare" witch, you'll have to wait a little longer, I have to finish her designs; she's not a hundred percent complete. Ciao!


	11. Roof

Chapter 11: Roof

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Zane snickered quietly to himself as he held Ark's hand. He could hear all of the infected in the building and he knew it was going to be one hell of a fight when they reached the roof, and he was going to enjoy every minute of it. He stared dreamily at the wall and tried to imagine some of the screams and bloodshed that he was going to enjoy in this theatrical performance of a lifetime. His daydreams were rudely interrupted when Louis picked him up.

Wriggling about, he shot an evil glare at Louis who merely shrugged. "'Big Sister' Zoey wants to look at you," he said, handing him to Zoey. Zoey sat him on the ground in front of her and started to examine him all over, searching for wounds and bruises. Finding none, she made her way to the sink in the room and started to run water from it, rolling up her sleeves. Zane looked at her curiously, wondering what she was going to do when she lifted him up and put his head under the faucet. Ark grabbed onto Zane's flailing legs and held them steady as Zoey took out her ever-present shampoo bottle and got to work.

Zane yowled pitifully as she ran her fingers through his hair, ignoring his cries. Ark sighed as he held Zane's legs, slightly feeling sympathetic towards their new companion. The scent of strawberries circled throughout the room as Zoey continued to wash Zane's hair. Francis and Bill stood guard while Louis handed her the brush she had stored in his pack. She took the brush from him and set it on the sink as Sion chuckled quietly. Zane shot him a death glare as Zoey hoisted him away from the sink and started to dry his hair with a towel, leaving the sink to run.

She brushed his hair gently and tried to part it away from his face but he shook his head and covered his face with his bangs again and she gave up. Ark wandered away from the room and came back, wearing a brand new sweatshirt. As Bill had mentioned, there was a store inside the hospital, and there was no need to wait for a clerk. He had also found a fast food restaurant, but he decided to wait until Zoey was done before telling the group. Sion took a moment to laugh at Zane, who was red faced from embarrassment, before Zoey turned her attention to Ark.

With the reflexes of a startled witch, she had Ark's head under the faucet before he had a chance to react. "Wrrry!" he cried, as she started to squeeze out the shampoo bottle. She then noticed that the bottle was empty and motioned to Sion. "Sion, can you hand me another shampoo bottle? It's in my bag." she told him. Sion nodded and opened up her bag. There were three bottles of shampoo in the bag; Strawberry Delight, Watermelon Frenzy, and Cherry Blossom Breeze. He selected the Watermelon Frenzy and handed her the bottle. She squeezed the green shampoo onto Ark's head, scrubbing furiously to remove the dried blood.

Ark yowled in frustration as Louis chose to go sit with Francis and Bill, out of the danger zone. Bill lit one of his new cigarettes and watched the commotion. Sion was more than happy to hold Ark down while Zane skulked in the corner, grumbling nonsense. Ark snarled at Sion as Sion smiled and gripped his legs tighter. Zoey finished scrubbing out Ark's hair and let the now smelling like watermelon Hunter lick his damaged pride in the corner opposite of Zane. Sion sighed at the two of them and put his hands on his hips. "So much for the prideful Hunter, eh?" he chuckled. Ark and Zane looked up from their separate positions at him.

Both of them rose from their positions and focused on Sion, Ark's eyes crimson and Zane's eyes a pale white color. Unaware of the immediate danger threat, Sion continued to laugh as Ark and Zane approached him from behind and grabbed him. They forced him under the faucet and turned on the water. Ark held Sion still while Zane picked up Zoey's bag and took out the bottle of shampoo labeled: Cherry Blossom Breeze. Zane squeezed the bottle onto Sion's head and Ark started to scrub vigorously, ignoring Sion's cries of "You traitors!" Zoey left the sink and sat next to the other survivors and smiled while watching the scene in front of her.

Several minutes later, all three infected sat in separate corners sulking while smelling like Strawberry, Watermelon, and Cherry. Zoey found a pair of medical scissors and started to trim Zane's hair while he was in no mood to fight back. She didn't think short hair suited him, so she trimmed enough to get rid of the split ends but left his hair at shoulder's length. Ark stood up and motioned for everyone to follow him. The group picked up their weapons and followed him, as he led them to the fast food restaurant.

"Paradise~" sang Sion as he helped himself to a hot dog. Zoey was munching on a pretzel while Louis was gorging himself on a hearty salad. The restaurant sold everything from pizza to champagne and the survivors were helping themselves to everything in the room. Bill was hoarding the steaks and trying to battle Francis for the oven while Francis was trying to use the same oven to bake a pizza. Sion beat them both to the punch and popped a chicken in there and set the dial. In the meantime, Ark had discovered... soda. Zoey found him several minutes later with soda cans neatly stacked to the ceiling.

Zane sat watching the celebration, wishing that the store didn't exist so the survivors' wouldn't have had to stop. He wanted them to get to the roof as soon as possible so he could have some fun. His thoughts were interrupted as Ark knelt next to him with a plate off hamburgers and offered him one. He was about to decline when Sion told him _"Ark doesn't give hamburgers to anyone, just take it." _and he took a hamburger from the plate.

Ark could sense that Zane was a troubled child, and he was determined to get him to open up, if only a little. He smiled as he watched Zane chew the hamburger slowly. _It's good, right?"_ he asked. Zane nodded slightly and he offered him another hamburger. He also offered him a soda as well, opening it for him. "Don't baby him, Ark. If he needs a little space, let him have it. Want a beer? They've got a good stock back there." He offered a bottle to Ark who politely declined the offer.

"Suit yourself." He shrugged and opened the bottle. "Don't drink too much!" warned Zoey from her table. Sion waved his hand. "I'll stop when the room starts to spin. Okay?" Zoey sighed. "I'd rather you didn't." Francis finally got his pizza and Bill was working on the steak as Ark crept closer to Francis's table. He had never had 'pizza' before and was interested in trying it. Francis looked away when Sion called him and yelled in frustration when Ark leaped at him and stole three slices.

He leaped away and shared his spoils with Sion, who had been the distraction, and Zane. Sion munched on his slice while Zane looked at his slice like it was poison. "It's safe, honestly!" promised Sion, sticking his tongue out at Francis and cleaning his mouth. Zane took a few bites before devouring the slice and hovering near Francis, waiting for another. "I think we found Zane's favorite food." Laughed Bill as Zane leaped at Francis in an imitation of Ark and stole another slice.

"Goddamn Hunters, Screamers, Smokers and whatever we find next!" growled Francis, going into another room to eat his pizza, or what was left of it, in peace. Everyone else started to laugh and continued to eat. Zane munched on his stolen slice and watched the others eat. He wasn't going to get attached. Not now. All they ever do is leave him behind. Always.

--

_"~~~! Hurry up or we'll miss the helicopter!_

_"Ma'am! We have to go!"_

_"I'm not leaving my son! He may have been listed as insane, but I'm not leaving ~~~ behind!" _

--

And that was the last thing Zane remembered. The woman who was calling for him and the man who took her away. He had remained in the Hospital for quite sometime, surrounded by Infected. The next few memories were of pain. The pain in his throat, unbearable pain. For a long time after that, he often cried himself to sleep and eventually found that his cries could attract infected. Any person who smelled 'different' he screamed at and watched as the others killed him, leaving him alone in solitude once more.

Ark's earliest memories were of pain as well, his hands and legs both burned and he was rendered immobile for a very long time. When the burning stopped, he searched the city often, searching for prey that he couldn't find, an urge to satiate a hunger for a food he didn't know of. The hunger subsided and his curiosity grew as he roamed, searching to learn more about the city that had become his home.

Ark patted Zane on the head as Sion went through the weapons, eventually acquiring a shotgun. He checked the barrel of the gun and then nodded to Ark. "I'm ready." Ark nodded and then flexed his fingers. It would be a long fight on the roof; he could feel it. The survivors slowly made their way to the roof and quickly rushed over to the radio, which was repeating over and over, "Hey? Anyone there?" Bill set Zoey down while Louis fumbled with the mike. "Yeah, there are survivors here!"

The radio crackled before answering. "That's great! I'm coming to get you, can you hold out for ten minutes?" Bill looked around the small room and then looked outside. "Ten minutes and no longer! Things are getting rough down here!" he yelled into the mike. "Roger that!" answered the radio. Francis picked up a propane tank." Let's make a bonfire." he threw the propane tank outside and made sure it was set up while Zoey and Louis guarded the stairs. Bill helped Francis set up the propane tanks as Ark and Sion situated themselves on the roof.

"Sion! Zane! We'll need you guys to keep and eye and an ear out for the helicopter! Tell us when it's coming!" called Zoey from the stairs. Zane sat on the roof and listened as the infected started coming from below and the nearby areas. " No Mercy!" crowed Francis from below as the infected rushed at their little fortress.

_Time until helicopter arrives: 10 minutes..._

Francis slugged an infected and shot another as Bill made a stand right next to him. Both were doing their best to hold the doorway and nearby window to protect the stairs were Zoey was. Out of all of them, Zoey was the only one who wouldn't be able to run away from an infected. The plan was to wait until the helicopter came then make their way to the landing point while protecting Zoey and escape. Their plans faltered when it came to the question of how to lose their infected companions, none of them had thought of any ideas.

On the stairs, Zoey shot an infected that managed to sneak past Bill and Francis and pulled her leg closer to her. When the helicopter came, Louis was to carry her to the helicopter with Bill and Francis providing cover until she was safely inside. Even her voice had failed her when it came to mentioning leaving Ark and Sion and now Zane behind. Louis gave a sharp yell as a Hunter pounced on him and she swiftly removed the infected from him. Her bullets missed as the Hunter leaped away and knocked Sion off the roof, towards the horde below the roof.

Ark moved to help his smoking friend when a tongue wrapped around his arms and throat and dragged him off the roof as well. His head slammed against the metal wall as the smoker on the opposite roof tried to pull him to his doom on the roof. Digging his claws into the tongue, he planted his feet into the ground when he felt the tongue release him slightly, pulling the smoker off the room and slamming him onto the concrete. He then lifted the tongue and ripped it from its owner before dropping it.

Sion struggled as the Hunter ripped at his shirt, avoiding the coat, and winced when the Hunter's claws made contact with his stomach. Shooting a sudden glare at the Hunter, he shot his tongue at the Hunter's shoulder. At such close range, Sion's tongue had the equivalent force of a bullet, tearing through the Hunter's shoulder and arm with astounding ease. The Hunter screeched in pain and punched Sion in the stomach, right on top of the wound. Coughing, Sion twisted his head to the side as the Hunter punched at his face until the Hunter was removed from him with gunfire. "Hurry up and get back up!" shouted Francis from the doorway. "This fight is far from over!"

_Time until Helicopter arrives: 9 minutes, 45 seconds_

Zane loitered about on the roof watching the fun as Ark and Sion raced about below, trying to avoid groups of infected. He was waiting for the Tanks to show up and then it would be a real show for him to watch. A roar from nearby lifted his mood considerably and he leaped to another roof to get a better look. A Tank with burn marks along its body came into view, roaring loudly as he picked up part of the roof and threw it at Ark. Even though Sion was much closer in terms of throwing distance, the Tank was dead-set on attacking Ark.

Ark dodged the rock easily and leaped out of the Tank's reach. "You again..." he hissed. Sion tried to use his tongue to grab the Tank's fist and stop its attack but yelped in surprise when the Tank pulled him off his feet and swung him into Ark, sending the two rolling. Sion rolled into a chain-link fence as Ark hit the wall and lay stunned for a few seconds. Zane laughed maniacally from the roof and rolled on the ground with laughter. To him, this fight was just too good to watch.

His late-night show was canceled when the burned Tank threw a large rock at him. The rock landed too close to him to be accidental and he rolled away from the roof in surprise. Apparently the Tank saw all as prey and Zane was no exception. His happy mood immediately turned to panic as he tried to escape from the Tank as it threw another rock. the rock landed behind him, cutting off his safest escape route. The other routes was either crawling with infected or off the building itself. Panicked, he looked around to find the survivors, hoping that they would think he was in danger and come to rescue him.

The survivors were dealing with another Tank, its roars shaking Zane's plummeting hope. Zane whimpered quietly to himself. He had been in that hospital alone, and now he was going to die alone. The Tank lifted its burned fist and swung it past Zane, connecting with something and sending it crashing into the side of the wall. Ark strained to lift himself out of the rubble as the Tank approached him, roaring.

Sion opened fire on the Tank's back, shifting the Tank's attention as Ark pulled himself out of the rubble and went to check on Zane. Zane was stunned. He thought that it was the end of him and then Ark saved him from the Tank's punch and got hurt for it. "Why?" he asked between tears, for he had been crying when he thought he was going to die.

Ark clutched at his arm and started to move it, testing to see if he could still use it._" When I carried you to the group, you were one of us now. I won't leave you behind, not for any reason." _he said. Tears rolled down Zane's face as Ark turned to look at the Tank. _"Now I have to go help Sion face this Tank. You keep listening for the Helicopter and tell me when it's coming, all right?"_ Ark leaped onto the Tank's back and begun to claw at the Tank as it tried to pull Ark off. Zane nodded and wiped away his tears. "Okay." he said, turning his full attention to the skies.

_Time until Helicopter arrives: 6 minutes, 23 seconds..._

Bill clenched his teeth and squeezed the trigger tightly as the infected kept coming. The Tank that attacked earlier now lay on the ground dead, but by the shaking of the area, he knew there was another one nearby. Francis wiped the sweat from his brow and called out to Zoey; " Are you two all right?" " Some infected got in here, but they're gone now. How are you guys doing?" she called back. "Well, we're not dead, so that's a sign isn't it?" shouted Bill. Zoey smiled. Bill yelling a sarcastic remark was a definite sign that they were doing okay.

"How do you think Ark, Sion, and Zane are doing?" she asked Louis. Louis reloaded his rifle and looked up the stairs. "Zoey, you're forgetting that Ark is a Hunter, Sion is a Smoker, and Zane is a Screamer. They'll be just fine up there." Zoey nodded and focused her attention back on the stairs.

_Time until Helicopter arrives: 3minutes, 2 seconds..._

Ark wheezed as he stared at the Tank from his hiding place. The burned Tank showed no signs of stopping, but he and Sion were worn out from dodging. He had been punched three times since the battle started and it was starting to take effect on him. Sion was wheezing as well, his tongue waggling back and forth as he panted like a dog. His gun had long since run out of ammo and was only useful for a melee weapon now. Both considered their options as the Tank got closer and closer to their hiding spot.

He looked around the area, searching for anything that they could use to gain the upper hand when his eye fell on the unexploded propane tanks that Francis set up before the horde arrived. He took a quick look to figure out where the Tank was before calling Sion. "Sion! Where are you?" he called. He refrained from using the infected language for the fear of the Tank being able to understand him. He doubted it, but the risk was too great to take a chance at that moment. "I'm over here!" called Sion from behind the Tank. "Do you have any ammunition left?" he called. "No, I'm out!" wailed Sion from his hiding place.

A pistol sailed through the air and landed next to Sion's feet, clattering loudly. Zane had run down the stairs and snatched it from the table and threw it to Sion. "I've got a pistol!" yelled Sion to Ark. Ark ducked as the Tank found his hiding place and punched the air above his head. "Use it! Shoot the tanks!" he cried. Sion looked at him. "What tanks?" he asked before his gold eyes focused on the propane tanks near the Tank. "Oh! Those tanks!"

He aimed at the tanks and punctured them with a single shot, standing in awe as the Tank became engulfed in flames and then running in fear when the flaming Tank chased him. The Tank caught up with him and punched him in the side, sending him reeling through the chain-link fence. He cried out in pain when part of the fence tore at his wrist, blood flowing down his fingertips. Hissing, he clutched at his wrist and gasped in horror when he realized that his dog tags were gone. Whirling his head around, he saw them glint in the light of the flames as the Tank punched though the chain-link fence, where the tags had gotten caught, and stared in shock as the fence fell off the building.

"My tags..." he whispered. "My promise..." he stood up and focused on the Tank; the rest of the world meant nothing to him now. "Let's fight." he snarled. The Tank roared and charged for Sion as Ark leaped through the air again and landed on a part of the Tank that wasn't on fire. He dug his claws deep into the mutated flesh and ripped out a large part of the Tank's shoulder but froze when he hear Zane scream. It wasn't a scream of pain, but a scream of terror. Leaping away, he decided to let Sion handle the Tank while he found the source of Zane's fright.

Following the scream, Ark was surprised to find Zane dangling from a bent pole off the side of the building, still screaming in terror. _"How did you get down __there?__"_ Ark shouted. "I fell!" cried Zane. Ark evaluated the issue at hand. Zane was about 25 feet down the building, close enough for him to reach him, but far enough to prevent Ark from leaping back onto the building. Plus, he wasn't sure about the stability of the pole. Leaping onto it could send the both of them to their doom. He would ask Sion to pull Zane up with his tongue, but Sion was too busy fighting the Tank to even notice. _"The Helicopter is almost here!" _cried Zane as he struggled to keep a grip on the pole.

_"I'll get you from there! Just wait until I get down there!"_ yelled Ark as he tried to get a better look at the pole. Throwing his head back, he shouted " It's almost here!" as loud as he could, praying that the Survivors could hear him. Sion heard him and looked at the sky for a brief moment and nodded to himself as he saw the rotating blades of the helicopter. He then turned back to the Tank and put more shots into its face, trying to bring it down.

_Time until Helicopter arrives: 1miunte, 10 seconds... _

Louis picked Zoey up and made his way to the partially destroyed landing area as Francis and Bill mopped up the area. When Louis reached the landing pad, he waved to the helicopter as it started to touch down on the landing pad and put Zoey on the floor of the helicopter. Bill clambered inside and waved to the pilot who acknowledged them and then turned back to the controls." Is this the whole group?" he asked. Francis turned and looked back at the area covered in flames. "No. There are three more."

"I can't wait forever, but if you keep the infected away from the helicopter, I can wait five minutes!" shouted the pilot over the sound of the rotating blades. " Alright." said Louis, taking up his gun and standing next to Francis, who was already clearing away some infected.

"Hurry up and get here you stupid special vampires!" shouted Francis out of the pilot's hearing range. "Zombies." corrected Louis. "Whatever!" roared Francis.

Ark leaped out of the way of the Tank's fist as it swung past him. He knew that the helicopter was already there; it was just that they had to kill the Tank, rescue Zane, and then get to the helicopter before it took off.

_Time until Helicopter leaves… 4 Minutes…_

--

Whoo, that was a lot of work. I told ya it's a two parter. Ark, Sion, and Zane have gotten themselves in quite the pickle haven't they? Reviews welcome and questions answered vigorously!

Now for the questions.

Ark: _Foxstar-Nukiu asks : Have I ever tried a Monster energy drink? What's that?_

Chibi: If I find any, I'll give him some.

Sion: Why does that not sound good?

Zane: _I'm worried…_

Sion: EvilPointman asks: What's my favorite weapon? The Shotgun because it makes heads go poof! Actually, my sense of vision is thrown off horribly when I try to use a sniper rifle so the Shotgun is an easier weapon for me to use.

Ark: _I like to use the pistol when I'm not using my claws because I can punch with it as well as fire._

Zane: I haven't fought yet, so I can't answer that question.

Sion: NO, Neo-Kira, Tanks are not dumb as posts. They're smarter than that, but not by much.

Chibi: A question for me? Not, I bet it's for Ark. Neo-Kira asks: Ark, have you ever seen a Handicapped infected? Personally, I've never seen one.

Ark_: I have. Just before I ripped it to pieces. _

Sion and Zane: yikes… We haven't seen any.

Sion: Foxstar-Nukiu asks: does my tongue crush my lungs? I'm not even sure how I can keep my tongue in my mouth. And I have no desire to see how.

Ark: _I don't know how either._

Zane: _Don't even look in my direction._

Ark: _ArktonDartorix asks: Did the muscles in my legs grow in strength? Yes, they did. My legs are very strong compared to the other infected._

Sion: ArktonDartorix asks : Have I ever been really hyper before and wound up doing something stupid? Yes... Though I don't want to remember...

Zane: _ArktonDartorix asks: How can I yell so loud? I'm a Screamer: My vocal cords and lungs have mutated to enable loud yelling._

_Hmm... there's also several questions from several people, DO I remember my past life? Very little. I remember a few things and the rest is just an uncomfortable haze._

Chibi: Thanks for reading! And now, I have a special treat for anyone who's read all the way down here. A profile!

Ark Hunter (Kudos to (I forgot, Sorry! I do remember you though!) or the idea of the last name!)

Race: Infected. Sub class: 'rare' Hunter

Age: Around 21, presumably.

Eyes: Blue, Red when agitated

Hair: Brown

Height: 5'2

Weight: Ark: _Why do you want to know?!?!_

Clothing: Red sweatshirt and dark blue pants.

Affinity/Ability: Sense of smell. Ark can detect and/or track Survivors/infected for several feet, up to the length of the city.

Back-story: Labeled the 'King of the Hunters' by Francis, Ark is considerably larger than the other Hunters and much stronger. Ark spent most of his time killing other infected for pleasure but eventually grew bored of it and started to roam the city when he encountered the survivors. Loves to eat hamburgers, but will eat any kind of meat in general, with the exception of humans. A somewhat innocent yet still lethal individual, Ark saved the Survivors from a giant horde attack and is currently traveling with them. Ark is considered a valued fighter and somewhat as a pet.

Main method of attack: Hunter Pounce. Can leap at least 20 feet onto an opponent.

I'll post Sion's profile after a certain event happens in the story. For now, you'll just have to live with Ark's profile.


	12. Unity

Chapter 12: Unity

Disclaimer: (I forgot to do this in the other chapter! Oh no! I'll have to apologize twice in this one!) I do not own Left 4 Dead. Ark, Sion, and Zane are mine.

Okay, Part 2 of the helicopter finale! I hope you like it.

--

Ark dodged again as the Tank swung its fist a second time. He leaped into the air and gracefully landed behind the Tank and then dodged out of the way as several bullets flew past him. Sion was almost as lethal as a Tank at the moment, having lost his dog tags, and was taking no prisoners. Ark was slightly worried that Sion would hit him in the process and made it a point to stay out of his way. Taking a chance, Ark slid under the Tank and skittered to the edge of the roof where Zane was still dangling below. Zane was still clutching the pole for dear life, not that anyone could blame him, and was crying silently to himself. Ark looked around and spotted a somewhat safe ledge near Zane. If he could get there, he would be able to grab Zane safely.

Judging the distance, he leaped from the roof onto the ledge and was relieved to find that the ledge could hold his weight. Above, the frustrated roars of the Tank and aggravated gunfire could be heard from above. Sion, above, was trying to push the Tank off the ledge where it would fall to its doom. Not that he was getting anywhere. As the Tank punched at him again he ducked under a small set of metal stairs which he though the Tank couldn't squeeze under. He was swiftly proven wrong. "Get me outta here!" he cried as the Tank bore down upon him. The Tank crushed most of the metal under its weight, leaving Sion to hopelessly try and get out from under the metal.

He wriggled out from under the metal and gasped when he heard Ark's scream added in with Zane's. Throwing his pistol into the air to distract the Tank, he rushed to the side and found Ark holding onto the pole that Zane was clinging to Zane clinging to Ark's legs. A Hunter was leaping in between the two of them and trying to separate the two, sending off another set of shrill cries from Zane. Ark was doing his best to hang onto the pole and keep the two of them from falling, so attacking the opposing Hunter was out of the question. Sion watched as the Hunter leaped dangerously close to Ark's legs and barely missed Zane.

Sion shot out his tongue and wrapped it around the Hunter's neck when it landed on one of the ledges, yanking it off its feet and toward him. Ark's head snapped up when he heard a loud crack and then shuddered when the Hunter fell past the both of them, its neck having been snapped. "Hang on, you two! I'll get you!" called Sion as his tongue came close enough for Ark to grab. Ark grabbed onto the tongue and made a mental note to wipe hands off later as he used the tongue for support. Zane clung to his legs as he started to climb up.

As Ark climbed, he wondered where the Tank went but started to panic when he saw the Tank sneaking up on Sion. Sion was too distracted with pulling them up to even defend himself as the Tank punched him in the side and sent him rolling, his tongue pulled out of Ark's hands like a rope. Zane screamed hysterically as Ark started to fall down the side of the building. Thinking quickly, he punched the side of the building and hung there. A throbbing pain in his fist told him that his knuckles were bleeding from the impact but he held onto the wall.

He lifted his arms and dug it into the hole his fist had made, his hand throbbing in protest and relaxed for a few seconds. "_Zane. Climb up onto my back." _Zane whimperedand climbed up, hooking his arms around Ark's neck and squeezing tightly. Ark felt Zane's weight and nodded to himself. If anything, the hole in the wall had stopped them from falling, and also served as a decent foothold. Lifting his head to look at the edge of the building and judged the distance. They had fallen about six feet, putting them at a 18 foot race to the top.

Pulling himself up suddenly, he dug his foot into the foothold and leapt up, grabbing onto a side that was jutting out and used it for another foothold and continued up, reaching the roof. Letting Zane crawl off his back he sniffed the air cautiously. He could smell Sion's blood and it worried him. Had Sion gotten into a huge amount of trouble when he was trying to rescue them? Sniffing the air again, he jumped as the Tank came back from wherever it had been hiding, the flames on its body subsiding. Ark growled at the Tank and lifted his fists but stopped when Zane stepped in front of him.

_"Go find Sion. I'll take this." _he told Ark. Ark lifted one eyebrow and shook his head. _"There's a line between acting tough and acting stupid." _Zane glared at him. _"This is my way of saying sorry, okay?! Just go!" _Ark looked at him. _"Sorry for what?" _he asked, though he already knew the answer. Zane lowered his eyes. _"For calling all the infected here."_Ark nodded slightly. "Forgiven. Don't take too long." he leapt away from the fight and began to search for Sion. Zane watched Ark leave and then turned to the Tank. "Sorry." he said, charging at the Tank.

Using his small size to his advantage, he slid between the Tank's legs and kicked at the Tank's ankles, tripping the giant. As the Tank fell, Zane slid out from under it and darted to a safe distance as the Tank got up again. The Tank swung a fist at him and he ducked under it and brought up his arms in a circular motion, wrapping the long sleeves of his asylum jacket around the Tank's massive fist and pulling it. He twisted the Tank's fist away from him and turned the Tank towards the edge of the roof, releasing his sleeves.

The Tank roared again and lifted a part of the roof, recoiling in surprise when Zane closed the distance between them and swiped his sleeve at the Tank's eyes, blinding it with the force of a whip. Snaking his sleeves back and forth like whips helped to lessen the chance of the Tank finding an opening and attacking as Zane pressured the Tank closer to the edge of the roof. The closer the Tank got to the roof's edge, the more frustrated it got, eventually overpowering Zane's sleeves and lifting Zane off of the ground and throwing him against the ground. Zane cried out when he felt his left wrist hit the ground and lifted himself up with his other arm. He tried moving his left hand but whimpered when he felt it strain. _"Just like Zoey..." _he muttered, taking part of his sleeve and wrapping it around his wrist tightly.

_Time until helicopter departs: 2 minutes 53 seconds..._

Ark grunted as he helped lift a heavy piece of concrete off of Sion and shoved it aside. He had found Sion trapped under the concrete and worked desperately to free him. After the concrete had been moved, he checked on Sion. Sion was sure he had a cracked rib and was wheezing as Ark helped him sit upright. "Where's the kid?" he asked, still wheezing. Ark ran his fingers along Sion's chest and had a small smile of satisfaction on his face. _"I don't think anything's broken, but you should have Zoey check on you when we get to the helicopter. As for Zane, he wanted to fight on his own. Hey, where are your dog tags?" _Sion's eyes flashed gold for a second before fading to brown again. "They're gone. They were ripped from me when the Tank punched me into the fence. The fence is at the bottom of the building now." Ark tried to look into his eyes but sighed when Sion avoided eye contact. "I'm sorry, Sion."

Sion wiped his eye and motioned for Ark to help him up. "We'd better check on the kid. 'Rare' infected or not, everyone needs a little help with the Tank." Ark helped Sion up and the two of them ran/walked to help Zane.

_Time until helicopter departs: 1 minute 30 seconds..._

Zane wanted to cry now. Every time he got the Tank close enough to push it off the ledge, it would come back even fiercer. When he had made the decision to fight the Tank alone, he promised himself that he wouldn't call Ark or Sion, but he was seriously considering it at the moment. Silent tears ran down his face as he pressured the Tank to the edge again. A loud screech came from overhead as Ark leaped at the Tank's chest and used his momentum to push the Tank backwards as Sion's tongue wrapped around the Tank's ankles and pulled forward, making the Tank fall.

The Tank teetered on the edge before falling off, Sion's tongue releasing the Tank's ankles and grabbing onto Ark's waist and keeping him from falling. The Tank plummeted down the side of the building, roaring as it well to its demise. Zane wiped his eyes with his good hand as Ark climbed back up Sion's tongue and rested on the roof. _"You didn't have to come back for Me."_he said, sniffling. Sion cleared his throat and smiled at Zane. "You brat. We weren't going to leave you behind." Ark nodded as well and started to worry when Zane started to cry again.

Zane rubbed his eyes. "Thank you."

His ears caught the loud curse of "Where the Hell are those stupid idiots?! The pilot isn't gonna wait any longer!" and the cry of "Ark! Sion! Zane! Hurry!" before shouting to Ark and Sion. "The helicopter is still here!" Sion stood up. "What? I thought for sure that they left!" Ark stood up as well. _"Not without us on it! Let's go!" _the three took off and raced for the other side of the building.

_Time until helicopter departs: 0 minutes 20 seconds..._

Francis and Bill stubbornly stood outside the helicopter, straining their eyes to see if they could spot any signs of the others. Louis stood at the foot of the stairs leading up to the helicopter, frantically calling out Ark and the others' names, trying to get a response. "Your friends are probably dead! Move it already!" snapped the impatient pilot. Zoey shot him a glare. "Not all that worried for the safety of others, are we?" she growled.

"Look. I responded to a call for help. I found survivors. I waited for a few minutes. What more do you want, lady?!" he retorted. "For you to open the stupid door!" howled Sion. Zoey's head snapped to the closed helicopter door where Ark, Zane, Francis, Louis, Sion, and Bill were all trying to get inside at the same time. "Open this door before I blow it off its hinges!" yelled Francis. Zoey opened the door and breathed a sigh of relief as Ark crawled inside, followed by Zane and Sion. Louis crawled in next, followed by Bill and finally Francis. Once inside, Francis shut the door and gave the pilot the signal to take off.

Ark and the others had taken a few seconds earlier to change their appearance so as to not appear infected to the pilot. Ark had removed his hood and the tape covering his arms. He had planned on putting it back later after they were at the survivor encampment. Sion had buttoned up his army coat to hide his faded shirt and was quietly smoking to hide his tongue. Zane had changed the most overall, removing his asylum jacket, revealing a shirt underneath, and tying it around his waist to give the appearance of a overly large sweater. All three were looking out the window and watching as they left the city that had been their home behind.

Zoey then saw the blood dripping from Ark's knuckles and went straight into nurse mode. She took out the remainder of her medical kit and wrapped the bandages around his knuckles before moving on to Sion's wrist. "What happened to your dog tags?!" she cried as he held up his cut wrist. Infected heal quickly, so there was no danger of Sion bleeding to death, but she still wrapped his wrist. "I lost it during the fight." he admitted. "But at least it's better than losing my life."

Zane reached out his hand and placed his hand on Sion's lap. "For saving me." he uncurled his hands to reveal the dog tags with its broken chain. "I got it from the fence before it fell." Ark looked at him. "That's why you were down there!" Zane nodded as Zoey wrapped a bandage around his wrist. Zoey finished tying the knot and set the pair of scissors on the ground. "We all made it, so there's nothing to be apologizing for now." she told them.

All of them nodded and gazed out the window again. In the pilot's seat, the pilot spoke into his microphone. "This is rescue copter 4; I have rescued several survivors and am bringing them back to the encampment. Several are injured; please prepare medical treatment upon landing. "As the helicopter flew away, Ark stared vacantly out the window and looked out the window at the remains of their battle down below. "Good bye, Mercy Hospital." He said quietly to the window.

The rest of the ride was in silence with the exception of the pilot telling them that the encampment was a little ways off and they wouldn't be there until morning. Zoey patted Zane on the head and nodded. "I think we can wait one more day, don't you guys think?" she asked. Francis nodded and glanced at Bill who shrugged. As the group started to drift off to sleep, Sion put out his cigarette and propped himself against the side of the helicopter as Zane slept on his lap. Ark curled up on the floor as Louis used his bag for a pillow. Francis sat hunched over his magazine as Bill stared out the window and watched the clouds go by.

"Naughty Francis, looking at naked girls!" taunted Sion from a distance. Francis's head snapped up and his eyes narrowed into a glare as Sion tapped at his own eyes. "I can see you…" he added. Francis grunted and then went back to reading as Zoey shook her head.

Bill opened one eye and glared at Francis. "Go to SLEEP." He growled. Francis tucked his magazine into his bag and laid his head against the side of his seat.

--

When the helicopter touched down on the landing pad, it landed with such a thud that Ark rolled onto Francis in fright and received a scowl in return. "The medics are right outside!" Upon opening the door, the group was swarmed by medic doing random checks on the Survivors, who stepped out first. Ark immediately felt uncomfortable and he knew Sion and Zane shared his feelings. Fooling the pilot was easy enough, but to fool a bunch of trained medical officers? Sion nervously rubbed his arms and Zane clung to Ark's waist.

"They're not injured, they're with us." called Zoey from the area of doctors. "They didn't fight; we're the only ones who need treatment right now." Luckily for them, another helicopter landed at almost the same time, with its passengers needing emergency surgery. All of the medics rushed to the other helicopter, leaving the survivors and the small group of infected to stare at the sudden emptiness of the room. "Go check yourselves in at the desk outside the room. We're gathering names to find out who made it and who didn't." called the pilot, who was starting to take off again.

When he was gone, the group was free to talk. "You guys will just have to make up a name." said Bill, fixing his hat. Ark looked at the door where the medics had rushed through. "Let's go before they come back." He said, heading to the door that the pilot had pointed out to them. The survivors went through and registered first and then Ark and the others came in. "Name?" asked a small clerk sitting behind a desk. Her eyes stared at them through her overly large glasses as she pushed them up over her nose.

Ark shifted from his left foot to his right foot. " Ark." The clerk wrote down the name before looking up at him. "And your last name?" she asked. "Hunter." He told her. "Ark Hunter, " she read. "Go catch up with the others." Ark waited patiently for Sion and Zane to register themselves with the clerk as "Sion Duncan Severent and Zane Will Roberts" and the three quickly caught up with the survivors.

Due to a lack of housing, groups were being told to stick together and were given small areas to themselves. "What?!" shouted Francis. "You mean we gotta stay TOGETHER?!?!" The military official nodded. "At least until the situation clears up with the housing. Separate living quarters will be provided when they are available." He told them. Zoey stretched out on one of the beds in the small house. "At least there are enough places to sleep; we should all get some rest." She yawned. Francis protested, but took a space on the couch, much to Louis's despair, since Bill had claimed the other bed. Ark waited for the military official to leave before going to the door.

"Where are you going, Ark?" Zoey asked from her spot. "Out." replied Ark. Zane sat upright and followed him, along with Sion. As Sion exited the room he told Zoey, "This is our first time being around other people, but don't worry, we won't get into any trouble. We promise." as he closed the door behind him.

--

Ahh, another chapter done. I don't know how the readers will react to it, but I was really impressed with the fight scene I did. Took me an hour to complete and I hope that you enjoy it. Now what kind of trouble will Ark and crew get into at the Survivor encampment? You'll just have to wait and see...

Seeing as how there were no questions this time, The question/answer show will be held off until the next chapter. Ciao!


	13. Camp

Chapter 13: Camp

Disclaimer:I do not own L4D. I own Ark, Sion,and Zane.

*rage* Okay, trying to be civil here, but that was just plain rude. A person gave me a review saying that more or less my story wasn't worth it and it pissed me off. It CLEARLY says in the guideline that a well rounded critique is advisable. Now, I'm not saying that I type like a god or something, but I don't make it a point to leave a review on someone else's story which didn't impress me and say that it's crap. I hate people like that because it's those people who keep some of the really good fanfiction writers from ever publishing due to low self esteem! Yes, I know the talk with your own characters question and answer show idea is as old as fanfiction itself, but I did it because it was FUN! That's the whole reason I posted this story: TO HAVE FUN! Jerk. I'm done ranting now. Please enjoy this chapter.

Don't badger me about the back stories I was going on memory.

--

Ark rounded the corner of one of the makeshift streets and sighed as he weaved his way through the crowd. The leather gloves that Zoey had given all three of them had covered up their claws just nicely but he was still tense with all the people around. He thought he would be able to handle the feeling since he had been with the survivors, but he knew now that he wasn't ready for it. The were people everywhere, from small children to elderly women and men. Sion was feeling just as uncomfortable, and the numerous puffs from his cigarette just further proved it.

Zane clung to Ark's legs as the three walked along as people continued their duties. Some were cooking, a few were cleaning, but most were just hovering around. Ark could smell the anxiety in the air, most of the people were just waiting for someone to tell them what to do next like faithful little lambs. The only individuals having fun were the children who were too small to understand what was going on. Sion could see the sadness in the older children's eyes as they played; they knew that some people would never be seen again.

A small girl, one of the younger children, ran over to Zane and tugged on his arm. "Come on, you can even out the teams! Play with us!" she told him. Zane looked at Sion and Ark who nodded. "Go with her, but be careful." Sion said. Zane let the girl pull him away and went to join a game full of children. Ark watched the children explain the rules to him and then began kicking around the ball with the other children. "As long as Zane doesn't scream or anything, he'll be fine. Come on, let's see if we can find anything to eat or drink." Sion said, leading Ark into a bar nearby. The Bar was full of men twice Sion's size and just as muscular. They glanced up from their drinks as Ark and Sion walked by but then looked away as if it were nothing. "Why are we here?" asked Ark, avoiding the sudden loving glance from a girl in the corner.

"To see if we can get anything to drink." answered Sion, glancing around . A sign hanging on the wall read "Drinking Contest at 4; wash away your sorrows and win a prize! Whoever drinks the most wins!" Reading the sign, Sion's eyes lit up. "Ark, I think we've just found dinner." Ark narrowed his eyes at him. "Don't drink." Sion clapped him on the shoulder. "You don't, but I do. Sit back and watch." he told him as he walked over to the table and sat down. A burly man glanced at him through the thick mound of hair covering his face and snorted. "Boy, you'd best be goin' on back to wherever you came from. This here's a man's game. Ain't no place for youngsters."

Sion glanced at him with one eye. "Then I guess I'd better wait for a man to show up; there's only a wild animal at this table." The man glared at him before breaking into laughter. "You got some real rocks, kid. Makes it all the more worthwhile to bust them by winning." he roared. Sion picked up one of the glasses that a waitress had set down and finished the glass off in seconds. "Games begun. You'd better get started."

Ark left the conversation and left the bar. He was starting to get annoyed by all the looks he was receiving from all the girls in the room. Sitting outside, his ears perked up when he heard yelling. Going around to the side of the bar, he found an arm wrestling contest in full swing as two enormous men tried to pull each other under the table. Grinning, he walked over to the table to watch. The smaller of the two men pulled his opponent over the side of the table and laughed as the larger man slunk away to lick his damaged pride.

The announcer held up the smaller man's arm and shouted "The winner! Is there any other challengers?" before scanning the crowd. Ark watched as another equally large man sat in the chair and held up his arm. The two clasped hands and began to pull, both straining to defame the other one. The same man won again and Ark clapped his hands in delight. He wanted a chance to show off his strength against other survivors. When the announcer called for another challenger, he stepped forward to the table.

"A little on the small side, but anyone will do! Any bets on how fast this one will fall?" the announcer shouted to the small crowd. A few yells and cheers rose up from the crowd and the announcer started to take bets. Ark glared at the back of the announcer's head and sat down in the chair and crossed his legs. The man was much larger than Ark but was nowhere near the size of a Tank, so Ark wasn't the least bit intimidated. The man glanced at him before spitting tobacco onto the ground. "Another weak one. Did all the good ones die in the infection?" he snorted, holding out his arm.

Ark didn't answer but held out his own arm as well. "First one to pull the other one over wins! Fight clean, gentlemen! And...GO!" Ark and the man stiffened their arms at the same time and the man pulled on his end. Ark stared at his arm, which wasn't moving in the slightest, and then pulled back as hard as he could. At the entrance of the bar, Sion wandered out with his prize while looking back at the passed out individuals on the ground. "Give me a call when you get the real deal."he called back to the bartender when he stopped and looked around the side. "What's going on over there?" he asked as he waded through the crowd and stared in disbelief.

The man at the arm wrestling table was face down on the ground and Ark was siting in his chair with an innocent look on his face. The table was strained to the breaking point and was in the process of being replaced as the announcer was bustling back and forth, searching for a new challenger. A tall man dressed in military garb stepped forward and put his jacket on the ground. "I'll give it a whirl." His frame was like that of the average human male, but his brown eyes were smoldering with a dying flame. Ark gazed at him and noticed a look in his eyes that he had only seen whenever Sion was depressed. His slicked brown hair was neatly brushed back as he took off his hat and laid it on top of the jacket and walked over to the table.

He sat at the table and held out his arm and Ark grasped it, just like he had all the others. when the game began, he pulled the man over the table just as well, but offered a hand to help him up. "Thanks," he said. "Just needed a small dose of reality." he took Ark's gloved hand and pulled himself up. "Name's Chad. Chad Severent. What's your name?" Ark scratched his head, where had he heard Severent before? Not finding the answer, he shook Chad's outstretched hand. "It's Ark Hunter." he said. Chad looked him up and down. "You aren't overly miserable, did you just arrive?"

Ark nodded. " Got here a little while ago." Chad picked up his jacket and put it back on. "I wish you luck, you're a nice guy. Despite all the local assholes. Keep a good head on your shoulders and don't let this infection get you down." Sion burst through the crowd and gasped as he tried to catch his breath. "Never thought I'd make it through the crowd. Geez, Ark! I take my eyes off you for one second and I find you in the middle of a competition!" Ark looked away. "Says the guy who entered a drinking contest." he muttered. Chad looked at Sion. "You a military official? I've never seen you before." Sion glanced at the man's uniform and tugged at his coat. " Actually, I just picked this up from the city when we were escaping."

Chad extended a hand towards Sion. " Name's Chad, what's yours, pal?" Sion accepted the hand and shook it. "My name is Sion." he said. Ark caught a hint of a flame in Chad's eyes but it quickly burned out. "Name's Sion, huh? Kind of funny, I thought Sion wasn't a popular name. At least that's what my mom thought when she named my brother." he said. Sion stiffened and asked " Is your brother in the military?" before scratching at his arm nervously. Chad looked at the ground. "We joined together." Ark looked at the two's sullen faces and tugged Sion's sleeve. "We have to go pick Zane up." he told Sion and the two began to leave. Chad waved at them as they left. " See you around sometime, let's arm wrestle again soon!"

Ark walked beside Sion and remained quiet. He wanted to start some kind of conversation with him, but Sion was in no mood to talk. Ark turned the corner to the small field that he had seen Zane get dragged off to and smiled when he saw all of the kids running around with the soccer ball. Zane was kicking the ball around to another child and waved at Ark when he entered the clearing. Zane ran over to Ark. "How have you guys been?" he eagerly asked. Ark waved at him. "Okay, just getting to know the area better." Zane then glanced over at Sion. "Are you all right, Sion?"

Sion looked at him. "Huh? Oh, I'm fine. How was the game?" Zane clapped his hands together. "It was fun! We had to kick the ball into a goal area and then we had to keep the other kids from scoring!" he then looked past Ark. "I hear Zoey calling us." Ark strained his ears to listen but gave up. He would just have to take Zane's word for it. "We should head back soon," he told Sion. "Zoey and the others will be worried if we just disappear." Sion shoved his hands into his pockets. "I highly doubt Francis would miss us." he commented as they walked back to the homes.

When they reached the house, Ark and Sion picked up the sounds of the survivors talking inside and crept inside quietly to listen. "Well, after the war, I drifted around through endless odd jobs and various occupations before the infection broke out." remarked Bill at the table, pouring himself a cup of coffee. "When the first waves began, I thought it was world war III and here I was with a front-line seat. 'Course, everything went straight to hell after the special zombies started showin' up." Louis poured himself a cup as well and then put the coffee pot back on the table. "I was trying to get up the nerve to tell my boss that I was going to quit my job as a technician when the infection hit. Co-workers were suddenly enemies and my boss was quickly shot. Luckily, there was a weapons shop nearby."

Zoey picked up a apple and bit into it as Francis spoke. " I bar-hopped like it was no tomorrow. Bar fights, endless tussles with the law, drinks into the late nights. When the vampires..." "Zombies." corrected Bill. "Alright, ZOMBIES started to attack, I just thought it was one big old bar fight. Except getting bitten would not have been funny. After a few rounds with a few infected, I got myself a shotgun to keep distance between me and them." Zoey stopped eating her apple and looked at the wall. "Well, when the infection hit in my area, I was in the middle of my 49th Zombie horror marathon and had just asked my roommate to go make some more popcorn when the movie stopped being a movie. The walls caved in and infected rushed all the students in the dorm. I got lucky and escaped to the main campus where I got really lucky and found a gun on campus. Thank you for keeping what you confiscate, School Police."

Zane tripped over Ark's foot trying to get a better look at the table and startled all the survivors. Zoey put her hand over her heart and sighed. "Ark, Sion, Zane. I thought you guys would be back later." Ark patted Zane on the head. "He could hear you calling for us." Zoey shook her head. She had forgotten that one of them had super hearing. She stood up and pointed at the adjourning room. "I have a surprise for you guys, but it's not ready yet. Can you go into the living room and watch tv or something until I'm ready to give it to you?" she asked, gently ushering Ark and the others into the room with the couches and the tv. Ark sat down on the couch and stretched out while Sion sat on the floor with the remote and Zane sat at the end of the couch.

Turning on the set, Sion watched as the newscaster appeared on the tv with the ever growing numbers of how many people were affected by the infection. He shook his head and sighed. "So many people were affected by the infection..." he murmured. Ark rolled over. "The infection really did a number on many people. But we made it through, didn't we?" He glanced at Zane who smiled in return and then sat upright, sniffing. _"I smell...HAMBURGERS!" _Ark leaped off the couch and raced into the room where Zoey was. "Ark! It's not ready yet!" yelped Zoey as she struggled to bat away the prying claws of Ark from the microwave.

Sion looked up from the floor at the room. "Guess dinner's ready. Shall we get going before the vacuum named Ark eats everything?" Zane nodded and the two got up from their positions and walked into the kitchen. Ark was now on the ground and whimpering while rubbing his nose from where Zoey had smacked him. She set down a large plate of about 15 hamburgers and had everyone sit at the table before eating. Which turned out to be impossible. Ark and Francis fought over one of the burgers when there was clearly enough for everyone, Bill brought his shotgun to the table with him, and Louis brought a Molotov to make the burgers have more "Flavor." Zane sauntered around the fight and took a few burgers for himself while Sion opted for snaking his tongue above the fight and grabbing a few from above with his tongue.

Zoey hung her head and sighed. "So much for thinking we could have a peaceful dinner together..." She watched as the fight escalated from Hunter V.S Human to Hunter + Screamer V.S Human + Human w/Molotov. Bill decided to stay out of the fight and went to sit in the living room with Sion and take bets on the outcome. He bet five beers on the infected team and waited to see if he would be handing the beers to Sion, who bet on the survivor team. Winner: Zoey, who chased all of them with a sniper rifle. Eventually the group calmed down and they ate the rest of the hamburgers while watching the television. Sion and Bill took turns going through the beers as Francis flicked through the channels.

A small game show came on for a hour and the group, instead of watching it, took bets on who would be the first one to fall on the set out of nervousness. One of the games played on the show was "How courageous are you?" It involved a person dressed in a costume of a special infected and he/she would let the person in the costume rush at him. First person to run loses. The costume was so laughable though, the contestants fell over laughing long before they ran in fright. Sion changed the channel, muttering "That is so dumb," before finding another news station. The news blared out another up-to-date count of how many were affected by the infection and Sion turned the television off out of boredom. "You guys can have the remote," he said, handing the remote over to Bill. "There's nothing on anyways."

Bill turned the television back on and listened to the news as it gave it's latest report. "This just in: Dr. Bianca has just assembled the latest team of military gunmen to head into the city and study the effects of the infection. Here with us now is the doctor herself." A small stout woman stepped up to the podium and spoke into the microphone. "Hello. I am sending this crew into the city to study the effects and possible cause of the outbreak to hopefully prevent the further spread and maybe even a containment of some of the infected for study. I will not be accompanying this group, I will remain here to observe the few samples of infected that we managed to obtain and await success from the men. That is all." As the woman walked off the stage, Ark's eyes flushed crimson and Zane's eyes turned white. "That woman... She was with the group of humans I saw the first time!" he told the survivors. Zane looked at the television with hatred. "I saw her at the Hospital. I can't stand her." Zoey looked back at the screen. "She seems...False. I can't place it, but it seems like the little speech she's giving up there is just an act. Maybe I'm worried over nothing though. I hope I am." she said.

Ark let his sudden anger cool down and went to join Sion on one of the beds. Sion had already pulled the covers over his head and was muttering to himself quietly. Ark laid down on the bed opposite to him and listened quietly to him. "I"m sorry..." Sion whispered. "Sorry to who?" Ark asked as Zane came and curled up next to Ark on the bed. Sion pulled the covers off of his head slightly. "I'm sorry... to the man I killed. I..." his voice failed and then he cleared his throat. "Sorry, Ark. I'm not in much of a mood to tell a bedtime story. Another time, okay?" He pulled the covers back over his head and went to sleep as Ark was left staring at the ceiling. Zane was silently snoring next to Ark as he pulled his hood over his face and then the covers over the two of them and drifted off to sleep.

Early next morning Sion yanked the covers off of the bed and pulled Ark to the floor with it. "Whoops, my bad. Didn't realize you had a death grip on it. Sorry, Ark!" Sion apologized as Ark rose from the floor with eyes red and gloves off. "I just wanted to wake you up so you could see your prize!" Ark looked at him curiously. "Prize?" Sion lifted a box. "Yeah, from the arm wrestling match. You left before they could award the prize for beating their champion. They caught up with me when I visited the bar this morning. The original prize was a gallon of free beer but since they thought you were underage, they gave me this." Ark ripped the tape on the box and opened it.

Lifting out a object that was unfamiliar to him, he turned the object over in his hands and glanced at it curiously. "What is it?" he asked. He didn't have to wait long for an answer as Zoey came in the room. "Hi, Ark, Sion, how are you this- hey, when did you guys get an Xbox 360?" she asked. Ark looked at the Xbox. "Huh?" Zoey picked up the controller for the Xbox. It's a game system. You can play games on it. Wow, I didn't think that someone would have one of these." She picked up the box and moved it onto the bed. "What are you going to do with it, Ark? After all, it's your prize." Ark glanced at the box. "I'll give it away."

Zoey brushed her pants off and walked out of the room. "Oh yeah, breakfast is ready." Zane rose form the bed and bolted out the door after her while Ark and Sion stood in shock. "Hurry up or we'll eat it all!" called Zane as the two ran into the kitchen and intercepted Francis who was coming from the opposite direction. Lying in a tangled heap, Ark grunted as Sion tried to pull his hair out of Francis's vest. Zoey hung her head. "I gave them fair warning and still an accident happens."

A few minutes later, Ark, Sion, and Zane had situated themselves around the table and were eating peacefully with the survivors until Francis decided to play a game of keep-away with the ketchup. Ark snarled at him and reached for the ketchup, hissing in annoyance when Francis handed it to Louis. Bill rolled his eyes and focused on his toast as Ark held out his hand to Louis and grumbled when Zoey took the ketchup. After a few minutes, an all out battle between Infected and Human broke out. Ark pulled his hood over his face and grinned evilly. "Let's go." Sion let his tongue hang out as Zane put his asylum jacket back on as the battle for the long-since-fallen-to-the-ground-and-forgotten-ketchup began.

The battle froze as Chad walked into the room holding another box. "Hey, Ark! The dumb idiots forgot to include the free game for your prize so I-" His sentence dropped as he saw Ark with his hood up in Hunter mode, Sion with his tongue wrapped around Francis's waist, and Zane with his asylum jacket and sleeves wrapped around Louis's arms. "Uh," he began. "I take it you guys were in the middle of something?"

--

Uh-oh, seems that Ark and the others are in a little bit of trouble...

Sorry if this wasn't overwhelmingly funny or something like that, but the story is listed as Humor/Drama. Gotta have a nice balance of that. I promise that there is a humor loaded chapter ahead.

Sorry for ending this chapter on a cliffhanger, but I've got finals and I need to study.

Hooray! Another chapter done! With the event about to happen soon, I'll finally be able to release Sion's profile and his back story chapter! Yay me! Ciao! Irritating reviewer aside, I'm really thankfull for you readers taking the time to read and review. It warms my heart.

-------

Ark: Why was I down and out after only one beer? I guess I have a really low taste for it. Thanks for the question, jman95!

Chibi: Yeah, some of my relatives are heavy drinkers while the smell of alcohol alone is enough to make me faint.

Sion: Keifetodarkles asks Chibi; what about getting the witch in there?

Chibi: She's coming, She's coming, just give me some time. *tugs on shackles*

Zane: HuntHunt2004 asks if Screaming hurts my ears. Oh, that's nothing. I can specifically tune out certain sounds and my own screaming happens to be one of the sounds. I can hear all kinds of frequencies but I can choose to tune out a few.

Chibi: Psychotype want's to know why the pilot didn't see the infected and freak out. Plain and simple, he was too focused on the controls. A helicopter pilot, even an experienced one, rarely looks away from their field of vision to look at something in the helicopter. Unless it is a dire emergency.

Chad: Sorry if we missed any questions, the writer is a little pressured with the upcoming finals. Those who we missed, simply ask me in a pm or rewrite it and we will get to you in the next chapter. ( If some jerk doesn't upset the writer again)


	14. Truth

Chapter 14: Truth

Disclaimer: I do not own l4d. (This is starting to get annoying) I do not own any of the songs or their lyrics mentioned in here either. I also don't own any listed video games.

Whew, no bad review from the last chapter, I was terrified that you guys wouldn't like it. Anyways, I just saw the new trailer for Left 4 Dead 2 which is supposed to come out in November and already people are asking me if Ark and the others are going to be joining that madness. Fact is, I have to at least know the new infected types besides the Charger and the new roaming witch, and I also have to know location, method of rescue, weapons, and the personalities of the new survivors. It's a maybe for now.

Anyways... I had a lot of trouble with my finals so I couldn't update for the longest time and it saddens me, because I'm getting far too many questions of whether or not I'm still alive. I AM ALIVE!!! I GRADUATED!

Kudos to Samantha Rose, who helped me with this chapter!

--

Recap:

The battle froze as Chad walked into the room holding another box. "Hey, Ark! The dumb idiots forgot to include the free game for your prize so I-" His sentence dropped as he saw Ark with his hood up in Hunter mode, Sion with his tongue wrapped around Francis's waist, and Zane with his asylum jacket and sleeves wrapped around Louis's arms. "Uh," he began. "I take it you guys were in the middle of something?"

--

Chad stared in disbelief as he looked at the scene before him. Ark, Sion, and Zane, looking for all the world like attacking Infected, in the middle of a fight with two of the other survivors. Before anyone had a chance to react and before the moment had a chance to sink in on Chad's brain, Ark pointed at Chad.

"Get him!" Sion snapped back to reality and released Francis.

"Uh, Right!" he answered as he used his tongue to pull Chad through the doorway. Chad let out a yell of surprise as he fell to the floor with Sion's tongue around his ankle and was pulled into the room. Zane jumped on Chad's stomach as he was pulled in and held him down. Ark covered Chad's mouth and all three stared at him. Ark, still covering Chad's mouth, looked at Sion.

"We got him. Now what do we do?"

--several minutes later...--

Sion sighed while Ark and Zane debated over what to do. Chad, having fully grasped the situation, sat quietly while Ark and Zane bickered.

"For the love of- can we just DO something?! My tongue's drying up and I don't like it!" Sion snapped as Zane glared at him.

"What do you WANT us to do?!" he snapped.

Francis held up duct tape. "We could keep him prisoner."

Zoey snatched the roll from him. "That's just being mean. Besides, it's Ark's decision." She told them. Ark put his hand on his hip, lost in thought before Chad spoke as the survivors left the room to give them some privacy.

"Uh, have you forgotten about me?" he asked.

"NO." replied all the infected in the room. Zane walked around Chad's chair before stopping to sniff his hair.

"You smell like... Mom!" he cried.

Sion and Ark looked in Zane's direction. "Mom?"

Zane continued to sniff at Chad's hair. "Before I met you, there was a very kind Witch who looked after me for a while. She left like everyone else though..." his eyes began to tear up and Ark put a hand on his head to get him to stop.

Chad looked heavenward. "You know, we do have a Witch specimen. Maybe that's what he smells." he told them. Sion picked Zane up in his arms while his tongue was still wrapped around Chad.

"_Are you sure of the scent, Zane? It could be just another Witch." _Zane shook his head.

"_No, it's her. She has a funny scent." _Ark sniffed Chad's hair deeply and then snorted.

"Smells...sweet." he muttered. Sion stretched his arms,

"Probably perfume." Both Ark and Zane looked at him curiously. Sion covered his face sheepishly. "I... have multiple experiences with it."

Ark decided to not press the issue and turned back to Chad.

"What now? We can't just dump him outside." he asked. Chad shifted in the chair again and tried to get comfortable.

Chad rested his head against the chair. "I can keep my mouth shut, but sooner or later, you guy's are gonna get caught."

Sion put his hands on his hips. "You're under the assumption that we're gonna get caught." Chad tried to keep from smiling but failed miserably.

"No offense, but you three are hardly the type to hide your identity perfectly." Ark felt offended that Chad would bring that up, but it was true; Chad did discover them, what was there to prevent someone else from finding their secret?

Sion released Chad from his tongue and pulled it back into his mouth.

"This Witch. What's she like?" he asked. Chad put a hand on his head.

"If she wasn't infected, I'd have a go at her for sure, I can tell you that much. Beautiful pale skin, silver hair that sparkles under moonlight, entrancing red eyes that shine, but then she turns her claws on you and one swiftly forgets that. She's also got a gift for art. One time she painted a sunset with the paints that the scientists had given her for an experiment and she gave it to me to cheer me up after my brother died." he sighed as he looked out the window, reminiscing. Ark held out his hand.

" No choice but to trust you for now." Chad shook Ark's outstretched hand and smiled.

"For infected, you guys are easier to deal with than some humans. Don't worry, I work with infected as a day job; I'm not the least bit interested in raising an alarm on my day off." Zane looked at him from over Ark's shoulder.

"We can be stubborn if we want to."

Chad ignored Zane and then picked up the box that had been set in the hallway. "Here, this is yours. There's some special controllers in here as well as your game. The rest is still outside, if some little thief hasn't made off with it yet." Sion walked outside to go retrieve the box as Ark went upstairs to go get the Xbox, both stunned at the fact that Chad had actually taken the situation rather well. Francis, Bill and Louis walked past Sion outside to go to the bar that Sion recently cleared of its liquor supply while Zoey left to go find something to do.

"We'll be back in a hour so play nice with the military man, okay?" she told Sion as she limped off. Sion called out to her before going back into the house.

"Come on, we'll play nice! Not like we're playing a fighting game!" Sion then focused his attention on the large box by the door. "Now... how am I gonna get this box inside?" Chad watched Zoey limp away and turned to Zane, who was standing beside him.

"Is she okay?"

Zane nodded. "She just sprained her ankle." Outside, Sion was trying to lift the box and ultimately gave up, punching a hole in the box so he could drag it.

Inside, Chad was hooking up the controllers to the Xbox as Ark was setting up chairs around the television. Zane was bouncing on one of the chairs as Ark moved it, earning a glare from the Hunter, waiting for one of the controllers to be given to him. Chad reached out and then handed Zane one of the controllers. Zane held the controller in his hands before looking up at Chad.

"How do I use this?" he asked as Sion came through the door, lugging the box behind him. Chad reached over.

"Okay, you hold the controller like this..." he lectured as Ark went to go help Sion. Chad was determined to have as much fun as possible on his day off, even if he was hanging out with infected that managed to make it into the camp. For infected though, they were much better people than some of his co-workers.

_--One hour later –_

Zoey walked along as she headed back for the house. She had ran into one of the students from her college and had a long chat about what had happened. Even though she never really knew the girl or spoke with her before the infection, it was good to know that someone else from her school managed to survive the infection. She hummed the school song in her head as she passed by the bar and on a whim, walked inside. Louis and Bill were quietly sitting at a table, having a conversation while Francis sat at another table, drunk, yelling for another beer. The overworked bartender was more than happy to give him one under the condition that Francis would leave and give the poor man a moment to restock from Sion's earlier visit.

She pulled Francis from the bar, Bill and Louis assisting in the removal, and walked back to the house, Francis protesting all the while. When she opened the door again, she was greeted by music from the living room, as well as singing.

She walked into the living room to discover, Zane and Chad furiously strumming away at the guitars while Sion pounded on the drum set. Ark held the microphone tightly in his hand as he finished the song and bowed his head slightly at the end. Zane looked up from the tv and then eagerly bounded into Zoey's arms, embracing her waist as Chad picked up the dropped guitar.

"There goes our bass player. The positions open, if any body's interested. Lots of fun, handsome band members," he said with a wink at Zoey. Zoey rolled her eyes and gently removed Zane from her waist. Zane raced back into the living room and picked up the controller again, Chad sighing in defeat as Sion read the scores aloud.

"Let's see... Me: 96 percent on Drums: medium, Zane: 84 percent on Bass: hard, Chad: 92 percent on Guitar: hard, and Ark: 100 percent on Vocals: medium. You're trying hard next, Ark." Ark nodded and changed the setting before selecting the next song and letting them know he was ready.

Zoey sat in front of the tv on a open chair as Francis became best buddies with the sink and Louis became friends with the floor while rolling around from laughter. Bill propped himself up in the doorway as the song title displayed on the screen. Zoey squinted her eyes to look at the screen.

"You're doing 'Human' by the Killers?" she asked. Zane nodded eagerly.

"Yeah, we did it earlier and liked it. Ark made a few changes to the song and now it's really fun to play." Zoey listened intently as Ark brought the microphone to his lips and sang, his voice gentle, yet still fierce. Halfway through the song, she figured out why the others enjoyed it.

I did my best to notice,

When the call came down the line.

Up to the platform of surrender,

I was brought but I was kind.

And sometimes I get nervous,

when I see an open door.

Close your eyes,

Clear you heart.

Cut the cord,

Are we human?

Or are we Hunter? (XD sorry, had to do it!)

My sign is vital,

My hands are cold.

And I'm on my knees,

searching for an answer,

Are we Human?

Or are we Hunter?

He continued on till the end of the song, substituting Hunter for Dancer in the song. When the scores came up, he had scored 97 on hard mode.( Truth be, told I score that high on expert mode) Zoey chuckled slightly before crossing her legs.

"So, where'd you guys get Guitar Hero?" Chad fumbled with the red and blue buttons on his guitar before answering.

"One of the guys had it in his garage and didn't want it anymore, so we decided to give it away in a arm wrestling contest." Zoey laughed and then sat next to Sion, who moved from his chair and offered her the drumsticks. She took them from him and sat on the seat, turning her attention to the drums. Ark and Zane switched places, Ark straightening the guitar strap while Zane messing with the controls of the microphone on the tv. Sion took the other guitar from Chad and fastened it over his shoulder as Chad walked into the kitchen to get something to drink.

Chad turned on the sink and poured water on Francis's head , waking Francis long enough for Chad to fill a pot with tap water and set it on the oven. Turning on the oven, he listened to the group performance of 'La Bamba,' sung by Zane, before joining them with a hot cup of tea. After Zane finished the song, he turned off the Xbox and leaped onto a couch before lying down and closing his eyes. Sion yawned and shuffled a deck of cards in his hands before dealing them out on the table. Ark and Chad picked up a few cards and waited patiently for Sion to shuffle the remainder of the cards before taking a few of his own. Chad had to admit, this was one of his better days off.

Zoey yawned as well and laid down on the couch opposite of the table, away from the group. When she stirred again, her nose caught a faint whiff of strawberries and she lifted her arm up, receiving a soft moan from Zane who was cuddled in her arms. Gently moving Zane aside, she sat up and stretched her arms, wondering how long she had been asleep. Getting up, she walked into the kitchen where Chad, Sion, and Bill were still playing cards, but without making noise.

"How long was I asleep?" she asked, rubbing her eyes. Bill never took his eyes away from his cards.

"About two hours, I fold." he grumbled. Looking around, she noticed the lack of a Hunter.

"Where's Ark?" Sion folded his cards as well, grumbling. "Sulking."

Zoey lifted an eyebrow. "What do you mean, sulking?"

Chad placed a few cards down on the table and picked up a few new ones, dealing them to everyone. "We decided that there was a penalty every time we lost, and Ark lost to each of us, so now he's mad." Zoey crossed her arms.

"I'm almost afraid to ask; What was the penalty?" All three men snickered and Bill glanced at the stairs.

"Check their room and you'll find out." Seriously worried, she climbed the stairs to where Ark and the others were staying and opened the door. After locating Ark in the corner furthest from the door, she clasped her hand over her mouth to keep from laughing.

Ark sulked in the corner with the hood of his bright fuzzy pink parka pulled up over his spray-painted pink hair. His head was tucked between his knees as the light of the room glanced off his hot pink colored nails and he was whimpering loudly. She knew his hair would return to its normal color once she dragged him to a sink, but she couldn't stop laughing at the sight in front of her. If she had encountered Ark in the Mercy Hospital looking like that, she wouldn't have been able to take him seriously and would have probably died a gruesome death.

Laughing to herself, she walked over to Ark and patted him on the head to try and give him some form of comfort. While patting him, she realized that his whimpering was actually laughter, but not the kind one would associate with having a good time; this was the laughter of immediate and unpleasant revenge. He stood up immediately and climbed out the window, careful to avoid the eyes of any passer by and slunk off into the bushes, evil laughter fading away. Zoey stared as he disappeared from view, turning on her heel to go back downstairs. If she knew Ark in anyway, she knew that his revenge would be swift and she didn't want to miss it.

Minutes later, he came back in through the window and crept downstairs, a large box held tightly in his claws. Chad and Sion were still playing cards with Zoey sitting as far away from them as possible when Ark came into the room. Chad and Sion snickered quietly as they saw Ark in his current garb but froze in horror when they saw the box in his arms. Before Chad or Sion could run from the terrifying sight at hand, Ark pinned the both of them with his superior strength and got to work. Zoey soon found herself limping next door to the neighbors, begging them for a camera; she wanted a commemorative photo of what was going on in there.

She came back in the house with the camera as Sion stood in absolute shock, his face covered in makeup. Ark had successfully got both men fully "Dolled Up" with makeup and hastily pulled dresses over the two of them and was admiring his work. Zane, who had just barely woke up, rolled with laughter on the couch as the two men stood in shock. They quickly came back to their senses when the camera flash hit their eyes and Chad hid his face in shame as Sion ran upstairs to try and rid himself of the makeup. Ark smirked as Zoey took a picture of him too. Remembering what he was wearing, he screeched and ran up the stairs after Sion.

"Ma'am, I'm afraid as a military official, I'm going to have to confiscate that piece of equipment there." Chad remarked holding out his hand, clearly intending to delete the photos. Zoey tucked the camera into her pocket.

"No thanks, Soldier. This piece of equipment's in good hands." Chad crossed his arms.

"You're gonna keep those photos aren't you?" he asked. Zoey smiled warmly.

"Forever." Chad hung his head and removed the red lace dress from his body and cleaned off the lipstick and eyeshadow.

"Gotta hand it to your Hunter, he's strong. Much as I'd like to go upstairs and force him into this dress, I have to go. Give my best regards to them." he told her as he walked out the door, unaware that Ark had tied a pink bow into his hair.

Zoey waved goodbye as he walked off, wondering how long it would take Chad to realize that he had a bow in his hair, before turning to go find some nail polish remover and some shampoo for Ark. Zane was no help at all, he had given himself a stomachache from laughing to hard and had to be carried upstairs. Once upstairs, she opened the door to Ark's room and found Bill, Francis, and Louis all in the same condition as Zane as the other two infected sulked in the corner. Setting Zane down on the bed, she shot a withering glance at the men before pulling out the nail polish remover and her other equipment and got to work.

–

Chad grumbled to himself as he walked through the military facility towards the area where they had contained infected. He had been given hell at the entrance and things got even better when they discovered the bow in his hair. To further make his day, the good doctor had criticized him for not "Putting in the effort to further our knowledge on the infected" by giving up his off day so they could continue their research and experimentation. In his opinion, the doctor can just go straight to hell; it was his off day and he was going to use it in the best way possible. Walking past the containment units where normal infected were being kept, he covered his ears as all of the mini horde in there moaned at him and tried desperately to reach them. He made a mental note to have the cleanup crew clean the windows again as the contained Boomer vomited on it again, trying to attack him.

Detouring around the contained Hunter which viciously screeched at him and sighing as a Smoker's tongue bounced off a refined glass wall, he continued walking, eventually passing an empty room. Dr. Bianca had searched endlessly for a possible crew of people to capture a Tank specimen, but there were no takers. Thus, the room was empty. Chad doubted if that room could even hold a Tank, though the doctor had insisted it would, possibly to get people to go hunt for one. Stopping by the final room, he knelt next to the wall and looked inside.

A witch sat in the room, her silver hair shining dully under the bright light of the room as her hands moved back and forth. Clutched in her long nails was a colored pencil as her hand glided over a piece of paper that was set on the floor. Chad watched her draw; it was the only thing she had been allowed to do.

He could still remember the day they had brought her in very clearly. One man acted as a decoy and startled her; when she ran after him, all of the other soldiers cut off and possible escape routes and helped the man escape, leaving her in the room. She had struggled for some time, but then resigned to her fate and started to cry in the corner. After a few experiments had been performed on her, such as strength and agility, they started with the stimulus experiments. One of the experiments was leaving a stuffed animal in the room with her and watching if she responds to it. She had paid no mind to it, only when they had put a bucket of paint in the room did she take any notice.

He smiled when he thought about it, she had painted the glass red and yellow in the form of a sunrise. Since then, they had given her all sorts of art equipment and let her play around with them.

"...Hi..." She muttered, shaking Chad out of his reminiscing. Since the scientists only supervised when there was an experiment to be done, Chad was free to talk to her whenever he passed by. There were no audio cameras in the facility, so to anyone viewing the monitors, Chad was just sitting there, leaving him free to talk to her. She didn't talk when anyone else was around though, and he couldn't blame her. "...Where...go?" she asked, lifting her head.

"oh, just into town for my day off." he told her. It had been the day that he heard that his brother died that he first heard her talk. He had been ranting up and down the hallway, earning attempts on his life by the infected that were contained there when she told him to keep his head held high.

Since then, she had spoke to him in slow broken sentences, but she was more company than most of the people in the facility. Dr. Bianca had shown up at his brother's funeral and dragged his name through the mud in front of family members by talking about how he failed to do his duty as a soldier, the security at the front gate thought it was funny to lock him out for hours and pretend not to notice, though the men in the security rooms treated him decently, but he couldn't wait to get transferred.

"Hey," he began, sitting against the glass so he wouldn't disturb her. " I met a group of infected today. They were just like you, human looking. It was a Hunter named Ark, a Smoker named Sion, and a kid, not sure on his type, named Zane. They came from Mercy Hospital, just like you did." She lifted her head slightly and glanced at him, her soft red eyes covered by her hair.

"...Others?"

Chad stood up and stretched his arms. "Yeah. They're a bunch of klutzes though. They're good guys all together, even if they are eccentric. Well, I gotta go. See you during my next break, Zephyr." he walked away from her room and turned down the hallway and snapped at the screeching Hunter to shut up as he took his position at the security post. Zephyr turned her head back to her work and continued to draw, her picture forming an ocean. She reached over to the box that the scientists had given her and picked out a blue green pencil. Lifting it up gently with her nails, she traced a wave on the paper and continued to work under the bright light.

–

"Come ON, Ark! Quit squirming!" Zoey pleaded as she held Ark's hand still while trying to use the nail polish remover on his claws while Bill scrubbed out the Hunter's hair.

"_Ahhh! It burns my skin!_" he cried as the nail polish splashed onto his nails, getting an old wound. Sion held still while Francis and Louis struggled with the zipper of the dress as Zane cleaned off Sion's face.

"I hate nail polish and shampoo." grumbled Ark. Zoey poured water on his hair, taking over Bill's job and scrubbing.

"Don't you dare start developing Francis's bad habits." She warned. Ark sighed and stared out the window to take his mind off the scrubbing.

"I won't."

–

End Chapter 14.

Okay, so now the Witch character has arrived. Whoo. I'm too worn out to write a huge summary/review/rant at the end so I'm just gonna get to the questions and then go to bed. (Said at 3 in the morning... posted at 9 at night the next day lol) Took 9 rewrites for this chapter because the others turned out too wrong. I tried to make this as funny as possible without taking from the current issue, so sorry if I did a bad job of making you laugh, if not at all.

--

Mrhellsingfan asks: how come Ark has to have his hood down why cant he just wear it not every infected has a hoodie?

Ark: _I don't have any valid reason, I just don't want to wear it where there are a lot of people._

Anonymous reviewer Stephanie asks: What does Ark put on his burgers? Does he like it plain, with cheese , with ketchup?

Ark: _I like it with anything! Except for that weird wobbly stuff that Zoey made for me one time._

Anonymous reviewer Why_Am_I_Here asks: What's the weirdest thing you've seen another infected/Special infected doing?

Ark: _Another Hunter running in a circle. _(Actually seen on no mercy)

Sion: A Tank caught in between two roofs. (We set that up in Dead Air, actually. Funnier than hell)

Zane: A normal infected pushing on a pull door. (I shit you not, I saw an infected doing that)

Wolfnymph asks: I wonder what Chad was thinking when he walked in on that?

Chad: I wasn't.

Sniper 0f Stalingrad Asks:

To Ark: how many tanks would i have to put between you and a hamburger to ensure said hamburger wouldnt be consumed?

Ark: _Two or three sadly. I can't really fight Tanks on my own._

To sion, have you ever smoked weed?

Sion: No, beer's fine enough for me thanks.

To upcomming antagonist: what type of infected are you?

???: _I don't speak with lunch._

Chibi: Hey, how did he get on the set?

Foxstar-Nukiu asks: Ark Sion and Zane...what's it like being infected?

Ark: _How would I describe it? Uh, It's …uh…_

Zane: You would have to remember being human first, Ark.

Sion: I'd say it feels like …aw hell, I can't describe it either!

Chibi: Ark, Sion, and Zane don't see in orange like in the video game, but either than they're developed abilities, not much has changed from that of a human. Still affected by temperatures, same tolerances to substances like alcohol (as Ark found out) capability of drowning, burning, death by headshot, etc. But their injuries do close very quickly.

2nd question: Ark, why would you give away a Xbox 360?

Ark: _I didn't know what I could do with it._

Bradley McCloud asks: What makes the three rare infecteds so special above their own kind?

Also, how did the infecteds get contained in the city only? In fact what had caused the infection?

By the way, if the survivors kept barricading the safehouse doors, won't that be bad for other survivors? lol

Chibi: Where to start? If going on a technical level, I would say that when their bodies became infected, the infected genes couldn't replace a few of their remaining human genes, leaving them with their infected bodies, but the ability to think, speak, and learn. On the subject of the infected in the city, Think about it realistically. Francis, Zoey, Bill, and Louis were probably (Duh) not the only ones immune to the infection, and the infected were chasing them as they would any other survivor. Perhaps they knew that there were multiple survivors lost in the city somewhere and were trying to find them. On the actual cause of the infection (When the hell did I turn into the Left 4 Dead expert?!) It could have been a mutation of an actual virus, similar to rabies, A failed government experiment with poisonous substances (We do see military men while getting attack in a few hordes, no offense to anyone who works there) that causes disfigurement of the body if the person survives, anything could have caused it, I really don't know. (I highly doubt Valve knows either) and the survivors did unbaricade the doors before they left.

Onmi asks: Sion, why don't you just take the scope off the sniper rife? surely that would help you aim better.

Sion: *embarrassed* I forgot about it and I don't know how to take it off…

xXxUlquiorraxXx asks: I have a question for Francis actually... what makes him so sure he's indestructible?

Chibi: I'm not overly sure, but someone's gotta be the person guilty of machismo acts.

*searches around* I think I got all of the questions that were posted answered, but if I missed one, please post it again and I will answer it at the end of the next chapter. CIAO!


	15. Wrath

Chapter 15: Wrath

Disclaimer: I do not own left 4 dead.

Wow, a lot of feedback from the last chapter. I've been suffering from writers block, even going so far as to write a song about it, (Don't ask.) trying to think of the best way to do this. This chapter has been in my head for the longest time, all the way from start to finish, and all the events were planned. I hope everyone enjoys it, I wonder if I've gotten over my writers block yet…

In all honesty, I'm still suffering from writers block, so if this chapter isn't any good to any of you, don't give up on me. I'll get over it soon enough and re-write the whole darn chapter if I have to.

I'm gonna shut up now.

_Italicized this times means flashback._

--

Chad yawned as he sat up in his bed as the alarm clock blared next to him. " gurgh... the next time I set that stupid alarm on high, I'm using my gun." he grumbled, knowing full well that he would never do that to the alarm that he had bought when he got his first job. Next to him, all of the other soldiers were stirring in the room and beginning to talk about nonsensical things and he left the room to go get breakfast, annoyed. He never bothered with the other's conversations, nobody seemed interested in what he had to say anyways.

Passing by all the infected that were still bashing on the wall, again, he passed by the special infected area and covered his ears as the verbal abuse of his ears began. The boomer retched, the Hunter screeched, the Smoker screeched at him until lapsing into a coughing fit as he walked past them. When he watched the Hunter launch at him and hit the refined glass wall, he couldn't help but wonder if Ark was amused when watching others like him doing stupid things. Walking past Zephyr's room, he offered a brief "Good Morning," before entering the cafeteria.

The cafeteria was as loud as usual, soldiers who had gotten up before him fighting over the attention of one of the cafeteria women. Picking up a tangerine for breakfast, he bought a lunch ahead of time to eat later rather than have to wait in the long line for a meal as he went over the schedule that was posted on the side wall. Examining it, he found that his workday schedule had been crossed out for the day. Sighing, he got ready to leave the lab to go to the encampment, wondering how to spend his sudden day off. The doctor had a habit of sensing when her men were getting ready to file for a transfer or leave of duty , so she would purposely give them extra days off to regain their loyalty. He could care less about her trying to keep him around, the only reason he was still in the lab was to pay off a few things. If it weren't for the good pay, he would have filed his transfer papers long ago.

Passing by Zephyr's room, he knelt down and watched for a few minutes as she painted another oceanic view before telling her goodbye and walking out the door.

Thinking of the previous day, he decided to go check on the small infected family and see how they were doing. Hitching a ride on a passing truck, he got a lift into the encampment where he located the place where he had been the day before. Knocking on the door, he shifted from his left foot to his right as he switched his shoulder bag and waited patiently for the door to open. Ark opened the door, tilting his head slightly before letting Chad in without a sound.

"What's up?" asked Sion, lounging on the nearby couch that was in full view of the door "I thought you had work today."

"So did I." commented Chad, sitting down. "Someone was kind enough to cross out work for me today."

Zane crawled up onto Sion's lap as Ark walked back into the kitchen and got some water before sitting back down. Chad tilted his head back and rested on the chair, crossing his legs as Bill and Francis came down the stairs, both offering him a nod before going in the kitchen. Ark waved at them before turning back to Chad.

Ark twitched his nose slightly and glanced at the military man. For the life of him, he couldn't figure out why Chad was here a second time, now that their secret was out. Stretching his legs, he scratched at his head absentmindedly while playing with his red sweatshirt, which had been tied to his waist. Sion had stressed the importance of blending in as much as possible and now Ark wore a workout shirt instead of his sweatshirt. Adding in his gloved hands, Ark looked like a young construction worker who was taking a break. Running his tongue over his teeth, he removed his hand from his head and let it drop into his lap.

Chad was patting Zane on the head as Zane curled up next to him on the ground before setting his jacket on the child screamer. He figured that Zane might be on the cold side, seeing as how Zane had to give up his long sleeved asylum jacket for a large green t-shirt and a pair of brown shorts. Sure enough, Zane's feet curled up under the jacket and he let out a small sigh of content.

Ark moved from the chair he was on to the floor before Sion decided to speak. "So, what brings you to this side of the encampment?" he asked, lifting his own glass of water to his lips.

Chad crossed his legs forward. "I was dying to see my favorite infected family again. No, I'm just kidding. The good doctor kindly gave me another day off." he spat out the last sentence, uncrossing his legs. "But I wanted to tell you guys about the Witch the lab has, since I already told her about you."

Ark sat himself a little straighter, suddenly interested in the conversation as Sion set his glass down and turned his eyes towards Chad. Chad slid over on the chair so Zane could stretch his legs out and then spoke. "Zephyr is her name. Affectionately referred to as ZombiE infection biPedal witcH mercY vaRiety. Zombie was thrown in as a little gag to the scientists. Bipedal stands for the walking infected, seeing as most of our Hunters crawl on all fours and dubbed quadrupeds, Witch is her classification, Mercy stands for the location, and variety stands for the type she is because she's the only one in the lab with a clear understanding of anything, no offense to any of you. I called her Zephyr because it was easier, the rest of the lab calls her RW1."

Sion slid his hand over the nearby stand and picked up the glass of water again. "RW1?"

Chad turned his gaze towards him. "Rare Witch 1." he sighed.

--

Inside the lab, Zephyr was busy painting as usual, listening to the clock tick away, its horrible sound. She knew that every time she heard it, it was a reminder that she was a prisoner forever in the lab, unable to be freed because of what she was. A permanent life sentence. Sliding her hand back, she added another color to her painting before admiring her work. A beautiful oceanic sunset was painted on the sheet of paper, it's vibrant colors clashing with the white and gray walls of the room she had known at the hospital and then at the lab. Setting aside the sheet, she started to paint again, this time of an ocean at sunrise.

She loved painting the ocean, even though she had only seen it in a book at the hospital, the colors could be warm or cold depending on what she decided. She also loved painting with warm colors, a reminder of the small child who she had left behind to protect at the hospital. His outfit was always dulled by the color of his hair, the beautiful red always acting like a light in the gray hospital of death. If anything, she wished she could hold that small light in her arms again and comfort him, but since the child was infected too, he would be subjected to the same kind of inhumane experiments and it would have driven her mad.

As she painted, her silver hair slid over her shoulder onto the remnants of a long t-shirt, already stained with paint, and she took a moment to brush her hair back before continuing. Her arms were riddled with needle marks, from testing everything that put normal humans to sleep to taking blood samples and her legs bore the bruises and burns from the ropes that the men used to restrain her during the experiments.

Shifting her legs so that the newest burn wouldn't sting, she stared at the ceiling before resuming, a small smile on her face. While she had been subjected to many experiments, she prided herself on never going down without a fight. More that 12 men had already been sent to the local doctor due to a well aimed kick or lucky claw strike and she had made it a point to bring down a man per experiment. Her grin quickly faded as the lock of the outer reinforced door opened, armed individuals coming into the room to goad her into another experiment.

A man aimed at her with his weapon and shot, a small tranquillizer dart clattering to the floor as she slid out of the way, pressing her feet against the wall momentarily and launching at the man. Two other men shot at her as well, one of the darts was avoided and the other found a home upon her hip, above the remains of a skirt that came up to her thighs. Feeling the powerful tranquilizer already beginning to take effect, she used her remaining time to slam one of her hands on the nearest man's helmet, knocking him unconscious before succumbing to the dart, both men dragging her out the room.

When Zephyr woke again, she sitting against the wall of another room, water swirling around her ankles as she realized that she was in a water test, one she had taken before. From what she could tell, the goal of the test was to see how well her kind could do in unfavorable environments, such as water, mud, or a room with too many objects to move freely. Looking around, she saw the team of scientists that were writing into their notebooks at blinding speeds and glared at them before making eye contact with the lone female scientist. Dr. Bianca.

Chad, during his time sitting beside her room, had told her of everything that Dr. Bianca had done to him and his family. From the day that his brother Sion died, she had been a royal nuisance to his family, showing up at Sion's funeral to drag the dead man's name through the dirt with the denouncement of his last moments, demanding that the family pay damages for the damage Sion caused her by forcing her to go the distance to the hospital alone without military assistance, and continuing sending more men to the city, despite what had happened.

Chad had told Zephyr bitterly about his efforts to stop the investigations and trips to the city, voicing an argument that it was far more important to focus on rescuing the non infected before beginning a study of the infected, and how he was overturned by the same woman who stated that he was as cowardly as his brother, who should have put all of his efforts into capturing infected instead of hurrying them to the hospital once things went wrong.

"You and your brother are the kind of people who impede the flow of science." she had told him.

Zephyr gave her best glare to the woman, it burned her up to have to be studied like this, but it made her even more furious when she had to listen to Chad crying rather than hear a funny story he had to tell. To her, Chad was another small child who revered his older brother like he had been a god, but then having his god torn away by literally the devil. It often tugged at her insides, sitting against the wall and listening to the once proud man being broken down by the shame being placed on his brother's name. What often sat next to her room some nights was the shell of a man, a dying flame.

Sloshing through knee deep water now, she made her way across the room, the first stage of the test. Then she would have to come back and repeat until she was too exhausted to continue walking or until the water was past her chest. That was the only time the testing stopped. The scientists always refrained from putting her through any test that could severely injure her or even kill, though they had no problem herding a Hunter into a room full of flames. She suspected that it was because she was the only Witch specimen they had managed to obtain; Hunters, Smokers, and Boomers could be found easily.

Looking back at the scientists again, she saw the steely glint in the other woman's eyes, the glow of determination. The doctor wanted to put her into a room of flames, or see how much air pressure could be forced onto her before she started to suffer, that much Zephyr was sure of. Before long, the room was drained of the water and she was tranquillized again and put back into her room, fresh paints and paper having being placed in there as a sort of toy or peace offering.

Giving a low growl, she sat against the wall for a long time before starting to paint again, there was nothing else to do in the small room. Furious, she painted a portrait of nothing but red before discarding it, opting for a calming ocean scene. After painting the blue-green waves and then making white flow over them, she calmed down and started to paint the faraway blazing clouds of a sunrise. Looking back at the clock, she figured that Chad had at least two more hours before he came back, and wanted to finish before then and show him, maybe to coax a smile out of him.

Only a day ago, her mood had been lifted slightly when she saw him come back from the encampment. His eyes had their old flame back, the undying blaze that she had seen on the first day she had met him. As he sat beside her room and told her about the new people he met who were infected just like she was, his eyes were full of life, the flames inspiring some of the mixes of color that she painted with.

Rubbing her hip where the needle had pierced her, she set aside a sheet of paper to mix colors on, creating a soft, gentle, purple before continuing, painting the fleeting dark clouds from the rising sun.

--

At the encampment, things had gone downhill. Ark pressed himself against the wall trembling in fright as Zane hid behind his leg crying as the scene in front of them continued to get worse. Sion and Chad were at each other's throats, though Chad had the upper hand as the two tore the living room apart while venting their frustration at each other. Sion had finally gathered enough courage to talk to Chad about the original Sion, Chad flying into a furious rage and attacking the Smoker head on. Ark and Zane barely had enough time to scamper against the wall as Sion fought back, defending himself from the onslaught.

"I didn't mean to leave him behind, I was scared!" snapped Sion, trying to pull Chad's hand away from his shirt, the other man's hand tightly clenched into a fist and refusing to let go.

"More like you were waiting to snack later!" hissed Chad, tightening his grip. " Smokers never kill their own prey directly, they just pull the unlucky victim into the maws of the horde!"

Sion lifted his leg and slammed it into Chad's chest, knocking the smaller man off of him. It was understand able that Chad would be angry for the loss of his brother, Sion just didn't expect a punch to the face.

"You left him to DIE." growled Chad, rubbing his chest. " You're no better than those mindless killers!"

The comment stung all of the infected in the room, Zane's tears silently falling to the floor as Ark glanced down at his gloved hands. Killers. Yes, that's what he was once. Roaming the streets, searching for his next victim and praying that they would fight back to give him a thrill. But how much had changed inside? Was he still a killer to others, one lying in wait, or had the survivors been a good influence on his personality with the exception of Francis?

Clenching his hands together, he looked back at the fight as Sion struggled to his feet. When he first met the Smoker, Sion had been cowardly and a major pain, tripping every alarm in the area and begging for forgiveness when Francis threatened to shoot him and never joining into the fights unless his life was threatened or something made off with his dog tags. But watching him now, Sion stood to his full height proudly, with his hands firm and unwavering, only the fear in his eyes giving a small glimpse into the person he once was. Even with Chad's height of 5'6, Sion still stood proudly at his height of 5'8, the Smoker refusing to back down from his fight.

Sion gritted his teeth and tried to remain calm, his voice shaking slightly as he spoke. " I am not a killer. I couldn't do anything for your brother, but I am not a mindless killer."

"Says the Tank as he tramples helpless survivors." retorted Chad.

"I DIDN'T ASK TO BE INFECTED!!" Sion roared, his voice startling the Survivors upstairs. "I didn't ask to have my own body twisted against my will, to become something that people wouldn't hesitate to shoot!" he slammed his hand against the fallen chair. "He died protecting me. I didn't want it to happen, I didn't want him to die, but it happened." he softly muttered, turning his head downwards.

Sion wanted to disappear at the moment, to find a nice quiet place to drown out his thoughts. To him, he knew Chad would be angry and possibly even try to kill him over the loss of his brother; that was what most people did. And in the post apocalyptic world that they lived in, bullets served as justice instead of a life sentence.

Zoey and Louis hovered on the stairs, listening to the conversation as Bill and Francis stood at the top of the stairs, unsure of what to do. To barge in on the conversation now would be a extremely bad idea on all their parts. Chad continued to rub his chest, the words sinking in on him. The exact same thing that his brother had said when his father passed away protecting him from a bullet fired during a shootout twelve years ago.

"_Chad, dad's gone. He died protecting me. I didn't want it to happen, I didn't want him to die, but it happened_."

_--_

And, cliffhanger. Next chapter will be a flashback chapter, I guess. Still trying to gather all my thoughts and recover from the issues surrounding my life.

Hmm… I wasn't trying to rush this, I balanced it out well, I hope. Everything will make sense later, if I've left a few people lost and confused. Don't give up on me or my story yet, I'm gonna put the pieces together.

Anyways! The important announcements! My friend decided to give his gamer tag: Toushiro H, so that people can play with the same guy I play with (Warning, he Leroy's on the drop of a hat) and maybe I will be playing too! If I have a scheduled play date, I'll announce it on Gaia, as Crazy Chibi Sama, or on DeviantArt, as ShinigamiCero and announce time and date. I warn you, I'm not a good player on versus, but I have an uncanny ability for headshots!

Announcement 2! I have more fanart!

My sister, FullmetalDevil on DeviantArt, sat with me at 3 in the morning to do a full color and black and white Artwork of my characters, as well as Tori from SamanthaRose's story (With her permission), How Does It Feel? And even a few characters that haven't been introduced yet! So far, only the Tori and Sion pictures have been released, check them out on DeviantArt! Sion's black and white photo is my avi for now, and the links to Sion's photo's are on my profile!

Hmmmm…what else? Oh, yeah. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, I hope it didn't feel rushed or anything to anyone, I tried to take it as slow as possible and rewrote the darn thing 15 times trying to get it right. Major writers block and family issues DID NOT HELP the matter.

Now for the questions. OH YEAH! I have a character popularity poll on my profile!

Desert Shadow asks: Does the smell of shampoo interfere with Ark's super sense?

Ark: Not at all. Like Zane, I can choose to hone in on certain scents and ignore others.

Sharingan Nikki asks: Ark, does Francis know that you were the Hunter in the pot?

Ark: No, and I'd like to keep it that way.

Minaret asks: Zephyr, does drawing take your mind off crying? And did the scientists give you some decent clothing, or are they too scared to come near?

Zephyr: Yes, drawing does help keep the tears away, and as for my clothes, I'm still wearing what I was when I was taken from mercy hospital. No ones bothered. And they're too scared.

To Chibi: Do you believe in that theory that Witches cry because they were pregnant when they were Infected, and the mutation killed their unborn baby? And is Ark the only rare Hunter, or are there more?

Chibi: Whoa, been awhile since I was asked a question. About the witch, your review was the first I had heard of it, though in horror movies *cough dawn of the dead cough* a woman who was infected still gave birth.( At least, that's what I saw. I'm too chicken to watch the whole film) That or I've been up too late again. And as far as I know, Ark is the only rare Hunter from mercy city. There could be others.

To Zoey: Can Ark get high on hamburgers?

Zoey: Haven't fed him enough to try.

Curse Pen asks: Ark, would you ever be mean enough to tie Sion's tongue to a car (driven by Francis, of course) to see how far it would go?

Ark: NO! Sion would shoot me and him! Plus he'd see me coming.

Hydra1100 asks; how did Sion kill the boomer like that if he sucks at fighting?

Sion: Not much skill required to pull a trigger, aiming is the only thing that takes a bit of time.

MrHellsingFan asks: do you think there can be a girl hunter? or do you think that all girls turn common or witch? Ark, would you ever eat a triple cheeseburger from DQ?

Chibi: I think that there can be girl Hunters, but they would be more adept at speed than power because Hunters tend to pin their prey with their weight. As for the cheeseburger…ARK GET BACK HERE, WE'RE NOT DONE! You can eat the burger later!! *runs after him*

Jonus63 asks: Sion, you said you learned to speak by watching TV, what other programs did you watch than the news? did you watch movies too, maybe?

Sion: yeah, I watched movies whenever the news was getting old.

Foxstar-Nukiu asks: Ark, Sion, Zane what do you think a Witch would be like if she had anti-depressant?

All: Very odd.

Zephyr: ….hey.

Kaiser Spartan asks: Francis, Why does he scream like a little girl everytime he gets pinned by a hunter or anything basically?

Francis: Your ears need checking, that's Zoey, not me. (Chibi: yeah right.)

RisingSunGeneral0793 asks; Ark, You may be my favorite of them all, but i still want to know if that coffee incident back in chapter 5 still hurts, also, between a never-ending buffet of hamburgers, and an exact recreation of the World's Largest edible one, which would you choose?

Ark: the coffee wasn't fun. And about the burgers… I want the never ending. Never ending means that I'd never be hungry. The largest one would end eventually.

Slicerness asks: ark, what do your claws look like? in the games it lookes like the hunters  
entire hand is jagged and boney.

Ark: _hmm... my hands look like normal hands, just pale and a little on the bony side. my claws look more like lengthened fingernails._

to Sion:in L4D the videogame the smoker detaches his tongue if the victim is  
freed. do you have this ability? if so how long would it take to grow back?

Sion: I didn't know about that. hmm... I don't know if I can do that. not eager to try though.

Ciao!


	16. Memories

Chapter 16: Memories

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead.

Okay, I know it's been a bit of a break, but everything ranging from family issues to lack of inspiration has been hitting me in the face. *bows* I am sorry. Hopefully, this new chapter will help. please be gentle with the reviews....*hides under shelter*

--

_( 12 years ago…)_

_A young Chad sat on a swing, swaying lightly in the summer breeze as he watched sun shine down through the leaves onto his brother, Sion. Sion had been laying there for the last hour or so, and it was only a matter of time before their mother would come looking for the both of them, Sion replying with some excuse as to why neither of them were working on their summer homework._

_Yawning, he swung back and forth, trying to stay awake as he watched his brother sleep, half tempted to join him._

_Moments like these were hard to come by._

_--_

_( 7 years ago…)_

_Chad's mother knelt next to Chad and wiped away his tears and held him close as the pallbearers finished setting the casket into the grave, Sion staring at the grave with distant eyes. His black hair that he inherited from his father swayed gently in the breeze as he listened to a bagpipe musician blare out a tune that was making his mother cry._

_It had only been a week since the shoot-out, and their father had been all over the news as the man who put his child's life over his own and his duty, earning him praise for his actions and a well funded funeral._

_Chad wept as he watched the people in the area leave, watching them head to their cars after expressing condolences to the wife and children._

_Moments like these were hard to bear._

_--_

_(3 years ago…)_

_Chad sat and watched as Sion made a face while getting his hair cut, clearly not liking the idea but agreeing to go along with it. Having just joined the military, both boys were to get dressed in proper attire, meaning a hair cut for the both of them. Sion had tried to talk his way out of it more than once, but failed in each attempt, eventually resigning himself to sitting in the chair with a mirror, looking at his cropped hair._

_Giving a small chuckle, Chad sat down to get his own hair trimmed, not expecting Sion to develop a mean bone and pour shampoo on him. Growling, the two fought near the sink, eventually causing a huge mess, not to mention an even larger clean up bill._

_Moments that were too easy to treasure._

_--_

_( few days after the infection broke out…)_

_Chad watched with downcast eyes as the vehicles went by, bringing in infected that had been captured in the city and from Mercy hospital. He watched as the men tried to bring down an angry Witch, the Witch managing to kill a few men before she was subdued and dragged into the compound. His eyes held no life, no lingering spark of the person he once was. Only a day ago did the group sent to the city return, and his brother was not among the survivors. His world… had been ripped out from under him._

_The sole survivor, one of the scientists, was already wearing his patience to the breaking point within a day, and they hadn't even had a funeral yet. The local soldiers tried to cheer him up, but the moment the scientist stepped into the room, whatever smile they had coaxed onto Chad's face had been erased within seconds._

" _You should be lucky you're not going into the city with the next trip. With any luck, your brother's corpse should be long gone. Pray he didn't become an infected, I'd hate for any of our men to shoot a valuable subject." the scientist told him, shaking Chad out of his thoughts._

_Memories that were too easy to remember._

_--_

Shaking his head, Chad cleared the memories from his mind as he looked at Sion. The heights were different, but Sion did bear a striking resemblance to his brother, and it put him at ease, despite having been outraged only moments before.

Calming down, he scratched his head. " I'm sorry. I guess I let my emotions get the better of me." bowing slightly, Chad kneeled to pick up a few things that had been knocked about during the argument and was starting to sit them back on the shelves as screams were starting to be heard from outside, along with cries of "Horde!"

Ark heard some of the screaming and turned his nose in that direction, confirming that there was a horde in that direction, choosing to remain inside. Had he still been in the city, he would have been one of the first to join the fight, his claws itching for contact with flesh as he heard the screams get worse. However, the encampment's residents would sooner shoot him than try to befriend him if he had gone out to fight.

Chad however, rushed outside immediately to defend the encampment, uttering a quick goodbye before rushing out the door, slamming it behind him as cries of "Tank!" could be heard.

Zane looked back at them, his eyes demanding what to do as the Survivors all groaned and ran outside to help, Sion and Ark having no answer. Protecting the camp was not on the list of options. Looking outside the window, Zane winced as a few men were pounded by the rampaging Tank, looking back at the others.

Sion winced at the noise as well, turning his head away from the window but twisting his head back as he heard Chad's voice scream, " Oh shit! There's TWO of them!" before racing out the door, gun drawn. His promise hadn't yet been fulfilled.

"Sion! Where are you going?" cried Zane, running after him as Ark followed, both trying to keep up with the Smoker.

Sion remained silent, only casting a pleading glance towards Ark and Zane before diving into the horde.

Zane looked confused, but Ark knew the weight of Sion's promise and leapt into the horde as well. Protecting others was top priority, but finding Chad was also up there on the list. Reaching an infected, Ark brought up his hand to claw at the infected, but under the sudden realization of where he was, opted for punching it in the face and going after another. Sion was shooting at intervals, taking only seconds to determine if he was aiming at an infected or a resident before firing as he searched for Chad. Zane was unable to help at all, a soldier grabbing and forcing him to go with other children.

Zoey looked over and saw Ark running past them into another small group of infected and she was immediately worried for his safety. It would only be a matter of time before their infected dropped into their usual habits and be shot by a resident. Her attention was snapped back to the front of her as she heard the tell-tale sounds of a Boomer.

"Boomer!" someone in the crowd yelled. " Don't shoot it!"

A moment too late it seems, as someone in the encampment shot at the Boomer and got several people covered in its bile. Anyone who wasn't covered got a slight breather as the horde attacked those who were covered in bile, the horde growing larger by the moment. A few more tense minutes passed before everyone present realized that the horde was getting larger in number because they were coming from a damaged military vehicle that had been tipped on its side.

Sion found Chad quickly in the crowd, pulling him close as he started to back out of the horde, shooting at lesser infected as one of the Tanks lifted some concrete and threw it near Ark, Ark dodging out of the way as it hit the lesser infected he was fighting. Another rock landed next to Sion and Chad, separating them as the second Tank roared and charged forward at some of the residents, who were shooting at it with everything they had.

Chad ducked back into the crowd to assist several soldiers who were wounded as Sion tried vainly to reach him, a resident grabbing onto his waist to keep him from going into the crowd while Hunters and Smokers started to attack the residents. He tore away from the person and headed back into the crowd, finding Chad being the only thing on his mind.

Bill snorted in annoyance as a Hunter pinned another resident, shooting it off the poor individual with practiced aim while Francis seemed to be looking around for a larger gun. Louis stayed close to Zoey, both trying to evacuate those who weren't fighting, shooting at any infected who came close as Ark came up to her, worn out slightly from trying to protect people and kill infected without revealing himself. A loud noise to the left of them showed the Tank heading back to the downed vehicle, slamming its fist into the side of it and knocking down infected and human alike.

It pushed the vehicle into the fight, Sion making a split second decision to use his tongue to pull Chad out of the path of the rolling vehicle. Tongue wrapping around Chad's chest and legs, Sion pulled him off his feet and out of the path of the vehicle and released him as a voice cried out in the crowd.

"Smoker!"

Seconds after releasing Chad, shots rang out, two bullets piercing Sion's shoulder and lower left arm. Hissing, Sion examined his damaged arm quickly and tried to make sure Chad was still beside him, silently thankful for the poor aim of whoever had shot him.

The first Tank crashed to the ground with tremendous force, the other Tank seeming to become enraged, picking up a large chunk of concrete, throwing it into the crowd, harming infected and human alike. Chad staggered back to his feet, picking up his gun again firing at lesser infected rushing evacuating people as Ark slugged a Hunter that had jumped on him. The Hunter refused to budge until Ark's fist connected with its jaw, sending the Hunter tumbling, where it was quickly shot by residents.

" Ark, where are you?" Zoey called over the horde, searching for him and Sion. She was worried to no end about them, especially since there was multiple Hunters and Smokers running about, causing even more confusion in the minds of the terrified residents and overworked guards. A rain of gunfire followed by laughter made Zoey roll her eyes despite the situation, the girl fighting her way through the insane crowds.

Francis had found a bigger gun.

Waving to a man Sion and Ark had met at the bar, a man named Dartago, Zoey slammed her gun into the side of a common infected's head, shooting it once it was down. Looking up, she saw the large man beating away and killing some of the infected, looking out of place with his unusually odd clothing, but he was a bigger help than most of the guards, who seemed to only be capable of acting brave when there was other survivors around.

Shouting a thank you to the man, she ducked as another slab of concrete flew overhead, smashing up a wall that some terrified residents were standing in front of. Louis and Bill met up in the crowd, both exchanging momentary words as they tried to differentiate between infected and non, Francis still on the roof mounted Mini-gun blasting away at the Tank.

Once the second Tank fell to gunfire, Chad and the other soldiers started to regain confidence, taking on the common infected and the remaining Hunters and Smokers lingering about, Chad looking away momentarily as another vehicle pulled up.

" What on earth are you morons doing?!" snapped Dr. Bianca, gesturing wildly with her hands from the passenger seat. " Hurry up and capture the remaining infected! Shoot all who are unfit for the lab, I want only the best specimens!"

" Bitch." Chad muttered under his breath, the men snapping to attention and starting to try and round up the remaining infected. He refused to touch any of the infected, deciding that if any infected were rounded up, he would have nothing to do it. Several soldiers ganged up on a Smoker, dragging it inside the opening vehicle as one man yelped, him having been the bait to keep the Smoker busy.

Looking around, Chad spotted Sion laying against a wall, his eyes closed and tongue hanging out of his mouth. Coming up to him, he saw the blood dripping down Sion's shoulder and grimaced, thinking that the bullet probably didn't go through Sion's shoulder completely.

" Hey, we've got a Smoker over here!" one of the men called, Chad jumping at the sound of the man's voice. " It's injured, good work, Chad!"

" B-But…" Chad stammered, looking at Sion. " I-I wasn't…"

" I don't want an injured Smoker, you halfwits! I want one that is UN-injured! Just kill it, I already have one as it is!" bellowed the impatient doctor.

Chad looked at Sion before turning to face Dr. Bianca. " Fine then, but you'll be losing a rare subject, it's human looking like RW1."

The doctor was silent, the little woman actually getting out of her vehicle to come see what Chad was talking about before clapping her hands in delight. " So it is! Hurry up and load it in the back with the others, I'll treat this Smoker with 'extra' care! Hurry it up, I don't have all day!"

Chad shivered, not liking the way she said "extra care," but lifting Sion with a word of apology. He hated it, but since Sion was lying in the open, with no way to even protect himself, forcing him to become a lab specimen was the only way to save him. Walking towards the vehicle with a heavy heart, Chad set Sion down inside, ignoring the screeches from the other infected contained inside.

" I'm so sorry…" he whispered, turning away from the vehicle.

--

End Chapter 16.

Blegh… I am really feeling bad this Christmas… but never mind me. Just to the questions and then I can go to bed.

Foxstar-Nukiu asks : Hey Ark I want your opinion on the couple ZoeyxHunter and hunter fan girls *looks around nervously xD*

Ark: _Wry? _

Chibi: Personally, I don't mind the ZoeyxHunter pairing, but it has to be done very well. As for the fan girls… I happen to be one to my own characters! *sigh* lemme just go get vomited on by a Boomer or something.

Sion: How come I don't have any fan girls?

Slicerness asks: are you gonna be adding any of the new infected?

Chibi: From left 4 dead 2? I dunno, it's kinda hard to manage with the odd new types.

Tinkies asks :will there be any romance in this story? If so, between whom?

Chibi: Eh heh heh heh… haven't decided.

Kaiser Spartan asks: Ark, are you afraid that after eating so many hamburgers your arteries will get clogged and die of a heart attack? Or at least turn into a Boomer

Ark: If I die from overeating…at least I was in burger heaven. Become a Boomer…? *shudders*

Jonus63 asks: What is writers block? and what do you think would happen if my char, Zach. Would meet Ark, Sion and/or Zane?

Chibi: Writers block is the term used for a long period of inactivity on the writers part. It can happen when inspiration dries up and must be replenished. As for your character, I wouldn't know, what's he like?

Ittybritty asks: Sion, earlier you said that you're favorite weapon was a shotgun am I right? did you know that shotguns are actually extremely ineffective at long distances?

Sion: I noticed. Which is why I'm currently in the market for something with a bit more range. Any suggestions?

RisingSunGeneral0793 asks: Zane, do you pick up Radio Frequencies when you want?

Zane: What am I, a bat?

Dreamwriterx3 asks: why is Ark 5'2 or 5'3? That's kind of short... right?

Chibi: Hey, I've got a 35 year old aunt who's barely 5. Don't mock the little people!

Wrath of Sithis asks:

Chibi, is the encampment have an immune majority, or non-immune majority?

Ark, If a Rare Tank had a cheeseburger, would you fight him?Sion, if humanity fails and the infected take over, would you run for President? Zane, you were cut from the game, how does that make you feel?

Chibi: The majority of the encampment is non-immune, several managed to get out during evacuations. There are very few immunes in the camp.

Ark: _If he decided to keep me from it, yes._

Sion: What the? Why ask me THAT?!

Zane: Empty, really.

Sniper of Stalingrad asks:

Ark, what's your favorite type of hamburger?

Ark: _One in my hand!_

Zane, do you support this quote, "CHEESE FOR EVERYONE!"?

Zane: I like cheese!

Bill: Did you meet Forrest Gump in Vietnam?

Bill: …

Zephyr, Why haven't you bitten anyone?!?!?

Zephyr: why bite when my claws have a longer reach?

Slayre95 asks:

Ark, I have two questions for you. Would you literally kill someone for a burger? It doesn't have to be your friends though. Also if you had to choose between (and you stay away or I'll shoot) the triple bacon cheeseburger with the works in my left hand, or the new angus burger from McDonalds? Seriously though, if you charge me I will defend myself. I will however throw the one you choose out into the open where you can get it just to be fair.

Ark: _I WANT THEM BOTH! And no, I wouldn't kill for a burger. I think Bill put it as severely beat the person until they can no longer move and then take what you want._

Jirrue the Six Tailed Dragon asks:

Remember Dartago?

Chibi: I didn't forget him, he makes a cameo appearance in this chapter!

Kitty_nin asks:

Ark, Sion, and Zane, Have you ever thought of pulling a prank on Francis? If so, what would you do to him?

Ark, Sion, Zane: MULTIPLE TIMES.

Ark: I would… take his magazine again.

Sion: Hey! I was gonna do that! Well then… I would…take his gun!

Zane: I would put invisible plastic wrap all over a safe house door while it was wide open and watch to see if he can get out!

Squeaky asks:

Zephyr, you seem very motherly, but Chad describes you pretty much like a 10. how old are you?

Zephyr: I'm 19. I just think I happen to be Chad's type.

To lildaani: I am in the market for a decent beta, but my restrictions are pretty strict. Anyone who thinks they meet them is free to send me a message asking what they are.

Gah…. I wanna go to bed now. *Headdesks*


	17. Meetings

Chapter 17: Meetings

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead.

**You know what sucks? Life in general. I lost my pet dog to time about a month ago and I'm still feeling like crap over it. Would have had this out sooner, but life kept interfering. **

**I'm going to shorten the length of the chapters from now on. Not nearly as much content, but at least I'll be able to update much more quickly when life stops tripping me at the doormat. If you have any flames or concerns about the content of the chapter... just send them to me in a message. Life's already rough enough without 20 reviews of criticism or something.**

**There is nothing more scary than a horde of fanfiction readers.  
**

--

(Recap)

Walking towards the vehicle with a heavy heart, Chad set Sion down inside, ignoring the screeches from the other infected contained inside.

"I'm so sorry…" he whispered, turning away from the vehicle.

--

As Chad walked away from the departing vehicle, Ark narrowed his eyes and he leaped for Chad, knocking the human man over while growling fiercely. His mind was clouded with rage, killing this human and retrieving Sion from the vehicle was his only comprehensible thought. Chad weakly protected his torso with his arms yelling loudly when Ark's sharp claws mutilated the fabric and drew blood. Tearing at the rest of Chad's jacket with his claws, Ark tried to reach vulnerable points, points where Chad would suffer as much as he humanly could before he died, growling in frustration when Bill grabbed him by the waist and lifted him off of Chad.

"_WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" _Ark growled, red eyes burning with rage as he struggled against Bill's grip, Bill refusing to release the enraged Hunter.

"Calm down, son. Jumping around like a crazy person isn't going to solve anything. Neither will killing him." Bill told Ark calmly, the Hunter growling his frustration.

Ark mumbled something incoherent, glaring at Chad with venom in his eyes as the human struggled to get back on his feet, having been shaken by the whole event. Zoey came up to Ark, trying to calm him down, her own eyes narrowed at Chad dangerously as well. She had seen the incident and was sorely ticked off that Chad could do such a thing to Sion, but she didn't want Ark to kill him.

"Come on Francis, come on down from there, we need to help fix this place up a bit." Louis called, trying to get Francis down from the roof.

"No way, the minute I take my eyes off this baby, someone less worthy is gonna take her!" Francis called from the roof, looking down at Louis while patting the mini-gun.

Louis sighed and turned back to the situation at hand, waiting for Chad to explain his actions to Zoey and Ark, who both looked like they could kill. He was glad that the earlier panic had caused everyone to flee everywhere, leaving the survivors and Chad alone on the corpse strewn streets. Bill released Ark momentarily to grab Chad by the remains of his jacket and pull him close.

"You're coming with us, we have some things to talk about." he told Chad, who shrank under Bill's gaze.

"Y-yes… I understand…" Chad stammered, still feeling a bit stunned. He made no effort to resist, walking behind Bill numbly as Louis yelled once again for Francis to release the gun and come with them, again receiving a no as a reply. Zoey slowly dragged Ark with her, the Hunter wanting to have nothing to do with Chad, except maybe a hand in his death.

Once Bill had returned to the small home they had been given, he forced Chad to sit down where he could see him, sitting in front of him with his arms crossed. The others came in and settled down, Francis outside the door with his gun. Zoey dragged Ark inside, Ark moved next to Bill and stared at Chad with hatred.

"You can start by telling us why you handed Sion over to the lab," Bill began, Chad looking up at him. "And don't try anything stupid, son. Otherwise it turns into a game of who get's to kill you first."

Chad licked his lips before answering, his hands gripping the torn fabric on his knees, the knuckles white. "I had no options… Sion was injured, his shoulder was bleeding and the blood flow needed to be stopped. But the other soldiers… they saw him as a Smoker. They would have killed him if I didn't point out the fact that he was a Rare Smoker. He'll be taken to the lab, but Dr. Bianca will make sure the doctors there keep him from dying of blood loss."

Ark snarled at him, ready to storm the lab and retrieve his friend, but Zoey grabbed the back of his hood and held him still. "Don't, Ark," she warned, tugging a little tighter. "I know you're upset, but running off isn't the best way to get anywhere."

Ark snarled at her but settled down, angrily dragging his claws on the floor as Bill continued his interrogation. "What are they going to do to him?" he asked, hand resting on the gun he always carried.

Chad scratched at his head idly, trying to think. "She'll first treat him to make sure he doesn't die, and then run basic tests on his system, such as his tongue's capabilities and eyesight. I don't know what else she'll do to him; I only know the tests she ran on Zephyr."

"You said that you work at the lab, what's YOUR job there?" Louis asked as Francis finally managed to lug the mini-gun inside. "You don't look like a scientist."

Chad patted the shoulder bag he always carried. "I'm one of the technicians. Something gets broken, I fix it. I'm also supposed to be ready at a moment's notice to defend the camp. I've had lots of medical training though, but they say I'm too emotional to be working with the infected."

"You look about as handy as a box of Kleenex, and twice as fragile. If you're too emotional to be in the military, you should quit son." Bill stated, lighting a cigarette. "War is not for the faint of heart, and this may as well be war, except on the infected instead of each other."

"You'd better not be saying we should leave Sion in the hands of the lab." Zoey muttered darkly.

Bill immediately picked up on the glares of both Ark and Zoey, lifting one hand to try and stave off the ill intentions. "I didn't say that. What I meant was that when you become a soldier, you had better be prepared to end a life to protect your own."

"So we go in, grab the beer guzzler, maybe the Witch as well and then bail," Francis said as he came into the room, collapsing on a free chair. "Not that much thought to put into it, old man."

"Were it that easy, Francis, we would have gotten Sion back already," Louis muttered, shaking his head. "It's not just a matter of knocking on the door."

Ark huffed in disagreement, turning his head away from the conversation to glance out the window. He was concerned for the safety of his friend, hoping that the doctor wouldn't force Sion through inhuman experimentation or kill him. His concern for his Smoker friend only grew worse by the minute, his claws itching to scale the walls of the lab and tear apart the humans if they dared to experiment on Sion.

--

Sion rolled onto his side, trying to pull himself upright as he took a look at his surroundings. A solid white room with a single glass wall, no places to hide and no possible way of escaping through the glass. He felt awful, his stomach churning and twisting as he tried to get up again, glancing at the bandages covering his arm and shoulder.

"_Ugh… I feel like shit…" _he muttered blankly, knowing no one could hear him in his solitary cell.

"_It's probably because of the medicine they used to sedate you." _a calm female voice said, Sion turning to look at the nearby wall. _"I bet you're thirsty too, that medicine leaves your throat feeling like sandpaper."_

Sion rubbed a hand over his throat, testing it. _"No, I'm not thirsty; I just don't feel very well. You're Zephyr, aren't you?_"

The voice fell silent before answering again. _"Yeah, I'm Zephyr. How did you find out about me? Don't tell me you're an admirer or I'll hurt you."_

Sion couldn't help but laugh, despite how he was feeling. _"No, I'm not an admirer. I heard about you from Chad." _Finally managing to sit upright, he sat in the corner, one hand on his stomach. "I_ feel awful, that medicine must have been some powerful stuff_."

Zephyr shook her head, looking up at the glass wall. _"It'll wear off soon. Is Chad doing okay? I could hear all the commotion outside and then you were brought in."_

Checking his pockets and finding that the lab had stripped him of all his weapons, which was no big surprise, Sion closed his eyes and tried to get some sleep. _"He's fine; I helped him during the fight. I know he's alright." _he only managed to get in a few moments of rest before Dr. Bianca came up to the glass wall, observing him.

"It's simply amazing how these two can look so human, but have no communication skills." the small woman said, tapping on the glass. "Thankfully, I have plenty of Smoker subjects, so I'm free to experiment on this one instead of preserving it."

Sion tried to recoil away from the glass, his stomach twisting as he moved. Unable to help himself, he threw up on the floor, feeling horrible. His body shook as he coughed, spitting up remnants of his last meal before he collapsed against the side of the wall, wiping at his mouth with his arm as Dr. Bianca watched him.

"I guess infected don't take very well to the blood of their own types, it makes them sick." the woman said, pushing up her glasses. " Once he's fallen asleep, clean him up and make sure he's going to remain healthy, I don't want to lose such a valuable subject so soon." she instructed a few men, her long coat barely brushing against the floor as she moved down the hallway.

Zephyr crept up to the side of the wall and placed her hand on it. _"How are you feeling? I could hear from over here."_

Sion wiped his mouth again, letting his head fall on his chest. "_I feel really sick…worse than I've felt in a long time."_

Zephyr gave the wall a mournful look before opening her mouth again. "_What happened?"_

Clutching his stomach as he tried to get comfortable, Sion groaned as he shifted his weight. _"Long story… I'll tell you when I wake up, I'm just too tired to talk right now." _he closed his eyes again, feeling even worse when sleep refused to take him. His energy was now almost completely drained, Sion taking a moment to look up at the blank walls. " _Hey, Zephyr? You awake?"_

"_I thought you were going to sleep?" _Zephyr asked, tapping the wall softly.

Sion yawned widely. _"I'm tired, but I just can't seem to sleep." _he stretched out again, touching his injured shoulder and wincing. The wound was healing, but it would still take some time for him to regain full use of it, even under infected healing.

"_This is not good… my gun arm is damaged. It'll take some time to heal, even though I no longer have my weapon_." Sion thought, laying flat on the ground. _"Injured, ill, and restless. Lucky me."_

Zephyr leaned against the wall and hugged her knees to her chest, listening to his voice. _"How about… I sing? Singing always helps me rest in here. Just relax and try to get comfortable first."_

Sion shifted his body until he got comfortable, tapping the wall gently so Zephyr could begin singing. He didn't know the words to the song, but the tune had an amazing effect on him, the Smoker drifting off to sleep quickly. Once Zephyr heard him sleeping, she ended the song, humming quietly to herself as she got ready to make another picture.

She created a lovely snow capped scenery this time, the soft white and blue hues making her feel at ease with everything as she worked, hoping that Chad would come soon so she could show him her picture and also ask Chad to help Sion.

Some men came in a few minutes later to take her off for another test, the Witch silently beating the men up as they dragged her away. Rather than scream and carry on like she usually did she remained quiet, not wanting to disturb Sion's fitful slumber. Once she had been dragged out, she was subjected to yet another test, the Witch growling and complaining to herself before complying, thinking it was better to just get it done and over with it. Within an hour, she had completed the test, the men subduing her and removing her from the test room. Sighing in resignation, she let herself be dragged back to her small room and set down on the floor.

Looking up at the glass wall in fury, Zephyr growled at Dr. Bianca, who merely tapped the glass and smiled. "You should be thankful; I gave you a room mate. Try not to kill each other too quickly, I want a lot of data." she smirked before leaving. "Two rare infected in the same confinement zone should be interesting."

Zephyr lifted her hand to claw at the reinforced glass like she usually did but looked back to see Sion lying in the corner, a soft gasp escaping her. _"Are you…Sion?"_

Sion opened his eyes weakly, having to strain them to get a somewhat clear image. "_Yeah…" _closing them again, he exhaled slowly, Zephyr coming beside him. She could tell just by looking at his responses that he had been subjected to an eye test, a test that consisted of finding an out of place object amongst several similar ones while in an odd environment. Last time she had went through the eye test; she had to give up on painting for a bit because she had strained her eyes so much trying to find a red diving ring amongst blue diving rings in a foggy environment.

Reaching out gently with her claws, she touched the side of his face only to find that his skin was cold and damp with sweat instead of the usual heat that emanated from their bodies. Looking down at his exposed arm, she saw the remnants of needle marks in his arm and concluded that they must have taken some of his blood and put more wild Smoker blood in, causing a dip in his health.

"_What does that woman hope to achieve? To slowly make you wild like them?" _she asked softly, brushing Sion's hair from his eyes.

Lifting his head onto her lap, Zephyr slowly stroked his hair, singing softly to try and keep him in good spirits.

"_Little bird, fly high,_

_High above them all._

_How far on your snow white wings_

_Can you take me?_

_High above the sea, high above the clouds_

_All the way to the distant moon,_

_Can you take me?_

_If your wings break_

_I'll fix them_

_Even if you lose your way_

_I'll guide you home_

_For as long as you can fly,_

_I'll be with you._

_For as long as you can try…_

_I'll be by your side."_

Zephyr noticed Sion had fallen asleep again and leaned her head forward, gently kissing his forehead. _"Sleep well; I know someone will come for you soon."_

--

Ark paced the room angrily, snarling occasionally. Plans were being made and executed on paper, but no action had been taken yet and it was starting to get to him. It didn't help much when a soldier dropped Zane off, Ark nearly attacking him at the door. He wanted his friend back, and he wanted him soon.

"Ark, stop pacing around," Bill called gruffly as he looked over a map of the lab. "We'll get Sion back soon enough, but barging inside the building is not an option."

"What's going on?" Zane asked while climbing onto Ark's back. "Where's Sion?"

"In the lab! This _HUMAN_! Gave him to _lab_!" Ark hissed, his practiced speech falling apart from frustration.

Zane looked over at the survivors, their downcast eyes confirming what Ark had said. "We're going to go get him, right?" he asked, climbing onto a chair next to Zoey.

Zoey gave Zane a small smile. "We'll get him out. I promise." she told him, unsure of how it was going to happen.

Zane's smile faltered slightly, the tiny Screamer hearing the uneasiness in her voice. He opened his mouth and closed it several times, trying to find something to say. Looking over at Ark, who appeared to be getting more and more provoked by the second, Zane looked back at Zoey. "Is there anything I can do?"

"Kid, when we need you to call a horde, we'll call you." Francis groaned, rubbing his head. "On second thought…" he suddenly said with a hint of realization.

Zoey and Bill picked up on his sudden cheerfulness, Louis beaming at Zane. "We can use Zane to get in! Zane can call a horde or something and while the guards are busy, get inside!"

Zane grinned at the idea of being useful until his ears caught some unsettling noises on the wind.

Something was coming.

Ark was sensing it too, his instincts telling him to be wary of their guest if he knew what was good for him. Every bone in his body was telling him to be careful; their guest was one to NOT be handled with child's gloves. Noticing how the two infected were acting, Zoey gave them a curious look. "Are you two sensing something?" she asked.

Ark nodded, Zane climbing onto his back. "Our distraction." he said with a grin.

Zoey exchanged looks with everyone in the room before looking up as gunfire and shouts could be heard from the direction of the lab before grabbing their things to hurry and take advantage of the sudden chaos.

Some of the remaining soldiers were locked in heated combat with a large infected, several having already been knocked down by the creature.

Standing taller than Sion, the infected was hunched over on it's large claws, snarling lowly as its eyes tried to adjust to the constant flashes of gunfire. The infected's skin was pale, even for most infected, the shade a sickly gray and mottled. The head of the beast was beginning to take on an animalistic shape, the rest of the body matching it in terms of lack of human qualities. Large spines, lavender in color adorned the creature's face, upper body and feet, a horrific mutation that made it look like something from sci-fi horror films.

A strange sort of substance oozed out of the infected's mouth, the torso being covered in the slimy substance as it walked forward, lunging at some of the men and tearing into them with force. Ark dashed into the fight, leaping over all the combatants and scaling the fence with little difficulty. Zoey watched him with a sad expression in her eyes, turning her attention to the infected.

What little faith Ark had in trusting humans was on shaky ground, and interfering with the enraged Hunter would damage it for good, maybe even destroy it. Reaching the outer wall of the lab, Ark crouched by it, waiting for the battle to begin. His now red eyes watched the battle against the large infected, watching and waiting for the moment to slip in undetected.

He would just have to be patient.

--

Again, I apologize for the shortness of the chapter, life's been throwing me an INSANE amount of curve-balls lately; beloved pet passed away, dad went stark-raving MAD trying to fix one of his cars, neighbors next door are in turmoil, etc, etc. life just got ROUGH.

In all honesty, I hate this chapter, I didn't get the 'feel' I wanted but I got it in the end. Still feels a tad awkward, but it's a set-up chapter to what I hope will be a great chapter!

Apparently, I'm not supposed to have the mini Q&A show at the end, so I won't put it here. ( Though I see people doing this for an actual story….)

I'll still answer questions, just drop me a message and I'll get back to you as soon as I can. *sigh* and if you have any flames about the horrid quality of the chapter, leave em be. I've had enough of a rough few weeks, some horrendous flame will just make me want to quit writing and become a recluse or something. Just save em for another chap, k?


	18. Escape

Chapter 18: Escape

Disclaimer: I do not own left 4 dead.

Man life's been kicking me in the shins and then stomping on my head, I have literally NO TIME to work on this! I had to multitask while playing a videogame during school break! But enough about me, onto the story. I actually had this done awhile ago, about two weeks to be precise, but fear's been keeping this from being posted. I hate to say it, but you guys, you guys can tear me apart with negative reviews and make me feel bad inside, and I'm afraid of that so much. I try so hard each time I write, but as my own critic, it's seems it's never quite enough. I'm still in the market for another beta reader, any takers? I can be found on Gaia, DA, and Yahoo, or message me here.

Anyways, enough rant.

Ark watched patiently as the chaos unfolded around him. Zoey and Louis were frantically trying to assist the fallen soldiers that covered the field while Bill and Francis were firing like crazy at the rogue infected. Many of the bullets seemed to pass by the rogue, the infected snarling deeply at them before shaking it's body violently, a spray of it's purple colored spines decorating the area and piercing a few limbs of the soldiers. Bill grunted as one of the long spines dug into his leg, the veteran retreating behind the lines of soldiers to where Zoey and Louis were.

" Where the hell did those damn things come from?" Bill grunted, pulling the four inch long spine out of his leg, Louis rushing over with bandages. " Can't be from the city..."

Zoey grabbed Chad and pointed at the infected, which was currently trying to chase a wounded soldier. " What is that?" she hissed, her voice dangerous. " Something from your lab?"

Chad shook his head frantically. " No! I swear it! That thing isn't from the lab!"

" Then where did it come from?" Louis asked, finishing with the bandage on Bill's leg.

"Who the hell cares where it came from, it's going to die here!" Francis shouted loudly, opening fire again on the infected. The battle continued on as Zane climbed onto Ark's back, leaning over to his ear.

" I had to listen for a bit, but Sion's being held in the back of the lab, with all the other infected." he said, pointing out the way. Ark nodded and leaped onto a window ledge, using it as a stepping stone to leap onto the roof, carrying Zane with him. Two soldiers were on the roof, shooting at the infected, both letting out hoarse cries when Ark pounced on one of them, Zane leaping off Ark's back onto the other man, sinking his small teeth into the man's neck, blood flowing freely and quickly. Ark's prey died quickly with no assistance, while Zane's target took a bit longer.

Once both men were dead, Ark got up and shed his red sweatshirt, letting it fall to the ground before tugging off the army jacket of one of the men. _"Zane, go back to the others, and make sure they're all right. Tell them that we need a way out of here, I'm not staying in this camp any longer."_

Zane looked down at the others, who were recovering as the remaining soldiers kicked at the fallen infected, low murmurs escaping them._ "Okay... what are you doing?"_

Ark finished buckling the pants he had swiped as well, grabbing onto the gloves and pulling them over his hands. _"Disguising myself. Can't look like a Hunter in there."_

Zane nodded and climbed down the building, out of the soldiers sights as Ark slid the helmet on over his hair and lifted the man's gun, taking a deep breath to calm down. Walking briskly, he headed inside and tried to look as professional as possible.

" INFECTED!"

Well, bang goes that idea.

Ark ditched the gun and leaped over onto the nearest scientist, knocking him over and rushing out the door. Thankfully, thanks to the appearance of the now dead infected and the now gone horde, the only people inhabiting the area were unarmed scientists. Many just attempted to get out of his way as he leapt onto people and walls, searching the hallways.

-

Zoey picked Zane up and held him as Francis argued with one of the soldiers, both standing their ground as Bill walked with Louis's help. The spines of the rogue infected had some sort of muscle relaxed coating it, rendering Bill's leg all but useless. Only five healthy soldiers excluding Chad had survived the attack, a second horde had swarmed the area and devastated the exhausted men, leaving many too injured to fight another round. Zoey had seen bodies before, having escaped Mercy City by killing numerous infected, but she felt nauseous at the sounds of all the soldiers in pain and the aftermath of the battle. The scent of blood in the air was so thick, she knew everyone could smell it without having to try.

Chad was working on getting a splint on a man's leg, sweat beading down his forehead from the previous horde attack as he tied the bandages securely around the wood. Wiping his forehead free of sweat, he continued on while Francis's swearing escalated.

The soldier was insisting that the military could have handled the situation, and that they didn't need civilian's help, and Francis was just as stubborn while insisting that the military needed their help. He had never been one for caring for the military, but this was getting on his nerves. Needing help and being thankful for getting it was one thing, getting help and then acting like a dick was another.

" I told you, civilians are not allowed to exit the camp, infected could attack and cause another outbreak!" the soldier snapped, the goggles hiding his facial expression. " The military is handling all outbreaks and situations concerning the infected."

" Fat load of good that's doin' you. If the Military," Francis drawled, putting emphasis on military." had done something when the infection first broke out, we wouldn't be in this hell, now would we?" this fight was seriously getting on his final nerve, but the point was to stall the soldiers as long as possible without starting a fight. The soldier in front of him though, was seriously begging for a fist to his goggled face.

" The government is doing all it can to contain the infection and reverse the damage done-" the soldier began, Bill cutting him off.

" Did they teach you to say that to all the questions we ask?" he chided, the soldier falling silent. " Thought so. Nothing's changed from when I was discharged. Always gotta know the prepared answer to any asked question, and the answer sure as hell ain't an answer."

Zane sat quietly in Zoey's arms, not opening his mouth at all as he concentrated on listening into the lab behind him. From the sounds alone, he could tell that Ark's cover was blown, but the lack of gunfire meant that none of the individuals inside were armed, Ark was causing chaos to clear the way. But time was limited, and either the soldiers would leave soon, or one of the scientists would find a gun.

" Zoey..." he whispered, the girl looking down at him. " Ark doesn't want to stay here anymore. He asked me if I could ask you to find a way out of this place."

Zoey pursed her lips. She had a feeling that Ark wanted to escape from the camp out of fear, but finding a safe way to get out of the camp was tough. A vehicle would be the best option, but all of the vehicles had been confiscated and taken to the lab to be used for the transport of infected and there was little hope of stealing one in plain sight. Unless she decided to go the movie route and take a hostage or something, which would only result in a gunfight. Sighing, she looked up at the building and silently praying for Ark and Sion.

-

Ark groaned as yet another room search turned up nothing. Panic was widespread throughout the lab as scientists scrambled for exits, the braver ones for weapons, all desperate to escape the infuriated Hunter. He had kept from killing, mainly cause it would waste too much time, but pounced on as many scientists as he dared, making sure they would be disoriented from the attacks. Blood poured down his left shoulder from a superficial wound received when he had jumped on one of the men, making a painful realization that the man was armed with a knife. The limb was beginning to seriously hurt now, the pain wracking his body as he moved it making him begin to spread out the attacks.

Exhaustion was also beginning to set in, the Hunter stopping to catch his breath at the entrance to the containment units. He could hear Bill's voice, chastising him for going on a "suicide run" and his stupidity for not bringing anyone with him to help, and he winced with every word, knowing it to be true. He had made several careless mistakes inside, such as picking too many fights and failing to check for weapons. " Look before you leap," Zoey was fond of telling him in the city.

Another careless error was failing to plan ahead, such as asking Chad whether or not there was a security lock. The numeric keypad glistened in the light, taunting him to take on its challenge as the chaotic environment began to settle, the scientists seeming to gather their wits. If he lived through this, he would definitely thank his lucky stars and do some of the things he hadn't before, like slowing down and chewing his food, not to mention thinking.

It seemed that someone was looking out for him though, the door was open and slightly ajar, Ark rushing into the door and slamming it closed. The shrill cries of the infected hurt his ears as he walked slowly through the area, glancing at the containment units. A Hunter screeched at him in the dim light, crouching briefly before smacking it's head against the glass with a loud thud as a Boomer tried to vomit on the glass on the opposing wall. Picking up the pace, he passed by the common infected and several empty areas, a wild smoker clawing at the wall while trying to reach him.

At the end of the hall was what he was looking for, the last and most secured room held Sion and a Witch, who he could only assume was Zephyr. Tapping on the glass, he waved at the two of them before beginning to search for a way to open the glass wall or find out how to open the door leading into the room.

" Gonna need a key to do that, Ark." Chad's voice said behind him, Ark jumping and whirling to face him with a snarl.

Chad smiled at Ark. " Figured someone needed to watch you, and I was the only one volunteering. All of the others are sort of busy."

Ark let out a soft growl, deciding to give the human the space to work. He had been upset with the medic for handing Sion over to the lab before, but now that he had thought things through, he wasn't as upset. Tightening his grip on his injured arm, he moved over so Chad could begin working on the lock. Sion looked up weakly at Ark, a smile crossing his face as he started to get up, lifting his head off of Zephyr's lap. Zephyr glanced up at Ark with a curious look in her red eyes, Ark momentarily forgetting where he was and what he was doing to stare.

Zephyr was definitely a sight to see, her silver hair hanging down her face and curling slightly at the tips, the bangs reaching the top of her eyes. Her frame was thin, but anyone who had dealt with a Witch before knew that the thin frame meant nothing. Her claws rested at her hips, the frayed remains of her clothing making her pale skin stand out more as she stood up as well, putting one hand on the glass and looking at both Chad and Ark.

Chad fiddled with the lock some more before sighing in disgust and kicking at it. " Damn… the lock must have been changed since Sion was put inside… ugh… gimme a second. Picking the lock the old fashioned way will… oh, just screw it!" he took his gun and fired straight through the lock, not caring that his attempts at a stealthy escape were foiled. Once the lock was a distant memory, he opened up the door, Ark immediately going inside the room.

_" Sion, how are you…?"_ Ark asked, helping his friend up.

_" I've been better," _Sion said, giving another small smile to the Hunter. _" But at least I'm still alive."_

_" Yeah, let's get you out of here and get some treatment for you." _Ark smiled, taking Sion's arm and slinging it over his good shoulder.

Chad helped Zephyr up, smiling at the Witch. " You alright, Zephyr?"

Zephyr shrugged. " Half naked, sleepy, hungry. I don't think all right covers it?" she smiled softly. " But, I'm free, and that's what matters."

Chad pointed out towards another door. " Ark, this way. It's pointless to try and get past the scientists again, we'll head out the service door."

Ark nodded and helped to shoulder Sion's weight and walked quickly to the door, pushing it open with his foot. Peering outside, he looked around. " Now what?"

" What you do now is return my subjects before I kill you." A female voice said behind him.

Ark spun around, growling lightly as he came face to face with Dr. Bianca, his blood freezing. Chad's description of her was actually being kind, the woman was far scarier than he thought. The very way she carried herself, the way her lips were set in a thin line and her eyes steely made Ark's rage grow, but his feet remained glued to their spot. Chad was frozen as well, Zephyr glaring but making no sudden movements thanks to the fact that the doctor before them was armed. In her hand she held a pistol, aiming it at the group. " Four targets, six bullets, only two chances to miss." She said with a smirk.

Chad gulped slowly, like most soldiers, he wore a bullet proof vest, but he doubted it's effectiveness at point blank range, Zephyr suddenly screeching and charging forward towards the woman, arms spread out wide. Bianca wisely backed up, not expecting Zephyr's sudden attack, moving backwards as Zephyr slashed the air where her face was a second ago. Ark backed up, moving Sion with him as Zephyr's claws tore open control panels as she chased the woman, infected beginning to pour out of the now opened containment units. Chad gestured to the stairs as the common infected started to form a horde, racing up them. " Ark, this way! We'll go out the back stairs!" he yelped as a Hunter pounced on him, knocking him partially down the stairs, his foot catching on a part of the railing as the Hunter tried to tear his gear open.

Ark looked at Sion. _" I'm going to help Chad, see what you can do to help Zephyr!"_ He released Sion's arm and coiled his legs, springing up the stairs and tackling the Hunter, digging his teeth into the Hunter's shoulder, refusing to let go. His wounded arm was completely dead weight now, Ark enduring the Hunter's claws tearing at his side. Chad reached into his breast pocket and drew out a pocket knife, flicking it open and tearing some of the fabric covering his pants, freeing his leg and then turning it to get it loose from the railing. His ankle hurt, but at least it was free and workable.

-

Sion moved to find Zephyr, following the trail of destruction that the angry Witch left behind and weeding his way through the infected. His stomach was killing him and his nausea was back, making his eyes constantly flicker between it's brown color and it's heightened gold color, Sion sluggishly making his way to the sounds and screams. For a short woman, Bianca could run, having somehow escaped the wrath of Zephyr, but wasn't out of the woods yet. Like Chad, Bianca had taken to higher ground, Zephyr trying to close the distance between her and her intended target.

The diminutive doctor reached the wall, the woman's expression turning into one of fear as Zephyr approached her, the Witch's snarl turning into a malevolent grin.

" If I weren't a lady, I'd drop you over this railing to the horde." Zephyr said, cracking her knuckles.

Bianca lifted her gun and fired, Zephyr rolling to the side, hiding behind a large crate, looking at the blood oozing down her thigh. " Damn infected!" the woman cursed.

Zephyr peered over the crate, ducking back down again quickly as she saw the pistol being aimed at her, a low hiss escaping her lips. The horde groaned and shuffled below, a few rushing up the stairs to try and get at the doctor, the woman shooting a few of them away before a long tongue snared her gun and ripped it from her. Sion took the gun from his tongue and threw it away, shooting it out again and grabbing Bianca's neck, retracting it enough to slam her head against the railing, pulling her over where he let her drop to the horde below, stunned and weaponless.

" Zephyr might not be able to… but I ain't a lady." Sion wheezed, pulling his tongue back into his mouth as the horde overtook the doctor, the woman's screams hurting his ears. The horde upstairs abandoned attacking Chad and Ark in favor of a more promising target, hurrying downstairs as a Boomer and wild Hunter joined the fray, the screams becoming even more shrill before bubbling away, Zephyr looking over the rail with a grimace. _" Ew…"_

Sion stared at the horde gathering. _" Let's go…"_ he said as he looked up at Zephyr.

-

Ark pulled Chad along, determined to catch up with Zephyr and Sion and leave before things could begin to calm down, the military man hobbling behind him.

" We look like one fucked-up wreck." Chad said with a grimace. " Your arm's damaged, and I couldn't even run if I wanted to right now. Let's just find Zephyr and Sion and bail."

Ark agreed with him, licking his dry lips. " Sion!" he called, silently praying that all of them would get out safely.

A violent retching noise reached his ears and he sped up, his legs propelling him forward to where the noise originated, every fiber of his being praying that it wasn't a Boomer cause then things would quickly go from bad to hell. He weeded through the bodies of the now dead horde and found Sion, currently throwing up again as Zephyr rubbed his back.

" _He said his stomach was killing him._" Zephyr said, gently stroking Sion's back. _" That woman, she was experimenting on him."_

Ark's mood turned even worse._ " WHAT? Where is she?" _he fully intended to make that woman regret becoming a scientist.

Zephyr helped Sion to his feet, supporting him._ " Dead. Sion took care of that. Now, can we get out of here before some idiot soldier comes to investigate or the infected notice us again? And can I PLEASE get some decent CLOTHES?" _

End Chapter 18.

Yeah, yeah, I know you were expecting this earlier and a bit longer, but the dreaded college rolled around and I got busy. Who knew that two classes could FILL my entire schedule? Anyways, I hope to get back into this ASAP, but I hope this satisfies you guys for now. To the bland commenter, sorry for the dullness of the last chapter, I tried to make it up with this one. *braces for flames* And for those of you expecting the grand showdown with the doctor or something, sorry to disappoint, but there's another shark in the sea, but with bigger teeth. Finally, for those of you who seem disappointed with this chapter, I seem to be hitting a mood slump in writing for EXTREMELY PERSONAL REASONS, but I hope to snap out of it soon and produce quality work again.

Ciao for now!


	19. Recover

Chapter 19: Recover

Disclaimer: I do not own left 4 dead.

for some reason, Fanfiction keeps messing with the page breaks, so bear with me, ok? I dunno if this chapter's any good, but it's again, required for the story to continue.

-page break-

Chad looked around as the soldiers scrambled to pick themselves up after the damage caused by the sudden onslaught. Sion was still weakly clinging to Zephyr's side and Ark was still supporting him. Thanks to his medical prowess, he knew that his ankle had been merely bruised, not broken or sprained and would require a few days to heal, but he would be on his feet faster than if it had sprained. The wound to Ark's arm was superficial, and would heal fast, along with the few cuts and bruises that the survivors got. The two worse wounds by far were Bill's leg, which would definitely require medicine and rest, and Sion, with his wound and sudden illness.

He had no idea of what the lab had done to Sion in the short time he had been held there, but judging by the looks alone, he was still suffering. The gunshot wound hadn't helped any, poorly treated and cleaned, Sion's eyes occasionally losing focus as he tried to stand upright. Just by the symptoms Zephyr had described, Sion had mild nausea and blood loss, heavy eye strain, and a lack of awareness. It seemed as if he was there sometimes and then gone the next.

Chad licked his lips and gently motioned to where they had stored all the vehicles that survivors either brought or were salvaged. "Take me over there, Ark, and I can get you a way out of here." He pointed out the way. "We'd better hurry."

Zoey helped hold Bill's leg steady as she wrapped the bandage around it securely. "Geez, Bill, why'd you have to stand there like that?" Francis mocked. "Ain't like ya didn't see that thing aiming at you, so why did ya freeze up? Arthritic knee?"

Louis shot Francis a look. "What would YOU have done? We've never seen an infected like that before!" he waved his hands in the air. "Walked out of the woods and took down three trained soldiers before we knew what was going on!" he pointed at the bodies of the three men, riddled with spines in vital places. "Bill's lucky to be with us."

Zoey shook her head. "We found something like that stuck in Ark's arm once, remember? We found it before we reached the mercy city hospital. Those spines were smaller than this guy, but they were the same." She got up and looked the now dead infected over.

The body of the infected was that of a young male, presumably a former street punk judging by the piercings in its ears, nose, and tongue, which were all disfigured by the infection. Its head seemed animalistic in shape, the infection forcing the jaw to stick out more, like a canine rather than a human and where the hairline began, middle length spines that lengthened closer to the back began. The torso was exposed slightly, decorated with well aimed shots, and the spines seemed only to cover the infected's head, back, arms, and tiny portions of the chest, leaving the creature open to attack by a level headed gunman. While still covered in spines, the head was also vulnerable, Zoey kneeling slightly and grabbing one of the spines, tugging sharply.

The spine detached from its head, Zoey turning the foreign thing over in her hand several times. The spine itself was very fragile, bending easily in Zoey's grip, but seemed to be denser at the tips, suggesting that while the rest of the spine was easily broken, the very tips could penetrate human flesh similar to a needle. A needle the size of a bullet, and coated in some sort of odd substance. Rubbing her fingers together, Zoey shuddered softly as she felt some sort of residue covering it, switching to her other hand. "It must attack with these things…" she told the others, letting the spine drop to the ground. " And then whatever's covering that spine must slow its prey down enough to make it an easy target."

Francis kicked at the dead infected. "Zoey, we saw that thing THROW these. Not charge at people like the pincushion from hell."

Bill looked at Francis. "Zoey pulled off that spine like it was nothing. I'd wager those things are meant to come off easily. Stick the enemy like a porcupine, and not let go."

The conversation ended when they heard a vehicle being started, Louis looking over in that direction. "Well, now what?" he asked. "Stay or go?" he pointed at the vehicle. "Stay and fix the place up, or go look for another encampment?"

"This place is a bust." Francis said, rubbing his chin. "Too open, crowded, and isn't orderly. If this were a bar, cops woulda busted this place long ago. Too many people to look out for and protection's spread thinly. You saw the Tank attack, sure they had fast response time, but the soldiers that arrived were no better than one of us with a little authority. Not to mention if this place was as secure as they said it was, the Tank would have never gotten in."

Louis was surprised at Francis's logic, nodding his head in agreement as the biker continued on. "Plus, when shit did go down, everyone was runnin' like a lawyer after an ambulance. Granted, it isn't a good idea to stand near a Tank, but running like a scared girl isn't much better. We'd have better luck tryin' one of the other camps."

Bill tested his leg, satisfied with being able to stand on it. "He's right. When the fort falls, pick yourself up and go to the next one if the area isn't safe. No need to give the enemy another advantage, either than the ones he's already got."

Louis pointed back at the camp. "But what about them? What are they going to do?" he asked.

Zoey gently picked Zane back up. "They'll be fine. With the lab destroyed and in chaos, no more infected will be captured and brought here, so the camp will be able to defend themselves with the help of those who were supposed to protect the lab."

Zane looked up at Zoey, the girl smiling back at him. "Besides, this place doesn't have a good feel to it. Screams dawn of the dead scene waiting to happen." She said, smiling. "First rule of surviving a horror film, if you don't have to be there, then don't be."

Louis finally sighed. "Can't go anywhere without wrecking something, can we?" he rubbed his head as Zephyr came over with Sion, his attention turning to him. "Wow, he looks like he's gone to hell and back."

Zephyr didn't trust the survivors at all, but it seemed as if they knew the semi-conscious Smoker in her arms, so she balanced him and looked at the group. "The doctor is dead… she put horrible things in Sion's body." She said softly, her red eyes glancing at the group. "You are Sion's friends? Then, please help him." She shook her head, her silver hair matted and in desperate need of attention. "He's very sick."

Zoey covered her mouth to keep from gasping at the sight of Sion's wound, but she nodded. "Yeah, we came here for him." She said as Louis came over to take Sion from her. As soon as her arms were free, Zephyr drew back defensively, her long claws held in such a way to where if she felt threatened, she could react quickly. Zoey then remembered Zane after feeling the child Screamer try to wiggle out of her arms, smiling at Zephyr. "There's someone here to see you." She said, Zephyr looking up at her.

Silently, she set Zane on the ground, Zephyr's eyes widening as Zane leaped at her, embracing her waist. "Mom!" he cried, rubbing his head against her stomach. "I missed you…" he sobbed, tears beginning to form.

Zephyr silently knelt to look at Zane, hugging the child. "And I have too… how did you get here?" she asked, gently wiping away his tears and brushing his hair out softly. "Last I saw of you, I had tucked you away in the hospital."

Zane sniffled. "I came here with them," he gestured at the group. "I came because I missed you…" None of the survivors, even Francis, felt it was appropriate to mention Zane nearly killed them on the roof of the hospital at the moment. It wasn't the time or place for such a subject. Zane and Zephyr continued to hug each other softly as Ark came towards them, his stolen jacket opened and the sleeve torn, sporting a bandage on his exposed arm. "Chad's going to take me and Sion to a place not far from here and treat Sion, and then we'll keep going… this place is just too dangerous." He said after several tries, his English still lacking.

Hanging his head, he sighed. "Guess… its goodbye."

Francis waltzed past him, Louis already loading Sion into the back of the vehicle. "Get your burger munching ass into that Hummer before I throw you in it." He said, getting into the driver's side, kicking Chad into the passenger's seat. "The sooner we all leave, the better. I ain't hanging around and explaining the mess, especially when I didn't do it."

Ark's jaw dropped and his eyes widened, but before he could open his mouth, Bill cut him off. "We're headin' out too. Might as well stick together, like before." He said, getting into one of the seats, Zoey following him. Rather than argue what seemed like a pointless cause, Ark got ready to get into the vehicle, looking back at Zane and Zephyr, who were still outside. "_Coming?"_

Zane nodded his head, ready to leave this horrid place behind, but Zephyr was apprehensive about getting into a vehicle again, especially with armed people. "I_… Is this the only way out of here?" _she asked, hugging Zane to her. Ark nodded, holding out his hand. "It's_ safe. I trust them with my life."_

Reassured slightly, Zephyr took his hand and let Zane go, the child bounding into the vehicle and sitting next to Louis as Ark helped Zephyr inside, the Witch finding a place next to Sion, propping his head on her lap as she had done in the lab before. Chad offered his place to Zoey so he could sit in the back as well; a tight fit considering Sion had to be lying down, but still manageable. Reaching over, he opened one of Sion's eyes, noting the unfocused expression once again. "Hurry up, it won't take the soldiers long to get their bearings now that the fighting's over." He urged.

Zoey looked back at them all. "We haven't forgotten anything, have we?" she asked.

Bill shook his head. "Nothing of any real value." He replied.

Francis took that as his cue and pulled out of the spot, driving towards the open fence that the infected had rushed through only a few short hours ago, Louis sighing and looking towards the camp. "Wow… Can't believe we're leaving the camp after all the trouble we went through to get to it." He said softly. "It almost feels as if we never went inside it."

Zoey looked at the upcoming trees. "We were in it, Louis. But things wouldn't have gone so well had we stayed, I bet. The lab would have just been continuing its experiments, and the people would have gone oblivious as always." She wrapped her arms around herself with a slight shiver. "And we were almost as far in the dark as they were. Not really safe in actuality. Just safe in our minds."

Chad remained silent, casting a glance over at Zephyr, who was still fearful. "Francis, turn here and keep going into the forest. There's an old trail that is a little rough, but we can still use it. Just gun down any infected that step onto the path, and keep going. I don't know how much gas this thing's got left."

Francis followed Chad's instructions as Sion began to cough, regaining consciousness as he clutched his throat, gagging loudly, gaining everyone's attention. His eyes were hazy and feral, the Smoker coughing and wheezing a few more times before the fit passed, collapsing back onto the seat. Opening his mouth slightly, he exhaled a thin plume of smoke, the smoke wafting through the air a sickly green color, similar to those of his kind.

"Never seen him do that before…" Bill commented, taking the words out of everyone's mouth. The ATV swerved dangerously to the side, Francis remembering he was the driver and pulling away before they could hit any trees. Louis opened the window of the Hummer, getting the smoke out, Ark wrinkling his nose. The smoke smelt of poor health and injury, unlike the simple illness that most smokers gave off. Shaking his head, he turned to look at Chad, who was covering his nose and staring at Sion curiously.

"Has he ever…" he began, the rest of the group cutting him off. "NO. He hasn't." the survivors all said at once.

Retreating, Chad turned his attention back to Sion. "Odd… normal smokers do this all the time, so why is this trait rearing its ugly head now?" he mused.

Zane looked up at Zephyr. "_What happened to Sion?" _he asked. "He_ looks awful and his breathing sounds horrible."_

Zephyr tucked the child in next to her. "It_ seems that the blood they put in Sion's system is affecting him, and he's behaving more like a common Smoker at the moment."_

"_But he'll get better, right?" _Zane asked her, the naïveté of the child making Zephyr want to find a place to bash her head against the wall for a while. "He'll_ be back to himself soon, right?"_

Zephyr sighed. "_Zane, I don't know. He could be on his feet as soon as tomorrow or he'll keep spiraling until he's like every other Smoker, I honestly don't know." _She rubbed her forehead, her eyes clouded. "I_ don't think he'll get that bad, but it'll still take a while for him to snap out of it… when your system is affected, it takes longer than a physical injury sometimes."_

Zane opened his mouth again to protest. "But_ it's not fair, why did they do that to him?"_

Zephyr covered Zane's mouth. "Zane_, you're too young to understand the ways of this world. To them, Sion wasn't a human being with an illness; he was a captured monster that they were allowed to experiment on freely until he died. That's all he was worth to them, just something to put through the wringer and play with until he broke. I know it's unfair, but that's just how things are to people." _Her claws dug in slightly on her tattered clothing before sitting back. "Their_ eyes are poor, and their hearts hidden, judging by only what they see."_

Zane fell silent, climbing out of her lap and onto Ark's to mull over what she had said as the Hummer rocked, Francis crowing loudly about how many infected he hit while Zoey warned him to keep his eyes on the road, not every little infected that happened to come near it. The group was silent, left to their own thoughts before Chad looked over at Bill. "What happened to your leg?" he asked.

Bill rubbed at the injury. "One of those spikes from that thing got me in the leg. Numbed it up real good, but got a little feelin' back."

Chad's eyes darted nervously. "They called it… a Shooter. At least that's what they said in that call."

"A what?" Zoey asked, turning her head to look at him.

Chad shook his head. "About a week before you guys came here, we had received a frantic call from the place we're about to go to. The soldiers there were being overwhelmed in a horde, much like the one we just got through, and there was a spined infected among them. They named it the Shooter. When the soldiers got there to assist, the place was devoid of infected and human alike. There were signs of a struggle, but none of the soldiers were found."

Louis shivered. "If you're trying to tell a scary story, you're doing a good job."

Chad gave him a look. "I wish I was telling a scary story." He tested his ankle, grimacing when it didn't want to go the way he wanted it to. "That really happened. The soldiers chalked it off to the horde and the place was abandoned because it would take too long to reach and give assistance."

Zoey bit her lip and grimaced. "Any way to beat them?"

Chad nodded. "Even a Tank can be beaten. I just haven't seen these guys in any sort of action to give you a real heads up on them. I do know that it takes less gunfire to kill them than a Tank though."

"Yo, is this the place?" Francis asked, pulling up in front of a bunker that had its door ajar. "Cause I don't see any other wrecked bunkers. "

"Ha ha. Yeah, we're here." Chad said, limping out of the vehicle. "You guys should be able to camp out for a short while here before continuing on. I know there's an encampment deep in the forest, and you guys might want to try that one next."

Ark leaped out of the vehicle, landing on all fours, his injured arm raised slightly. Taking in a deep breath, he sniffed the air and allowed his mind to sort through the scents. Blood and infection was the strongest, but there was the faint scent of something he didn't want to tamper with in the forest as well and it made him uneasy. Getting up, he looked around at the bunker. Really nothing more than a large cement building with gun turrets made livable, but it would do as a temporary shelter. Besides, now wasn't the time to be picky.

All of the survivors had moved inside, Zoey, Francis and Louis searching for rations, ammunition, and first aid supplies while Bill had been put on one of the beds inside, the veteran insisting that he was fine. Zoey insisted that he rest though, Zephyr and Chad helping to lie Sion down on the bed adjacent from him, Chad sliding the jacket off of Sion's shoulders and unraveling the bandages covering his shoulder wound.

The skin around the wound was cleaned hastily, and several areas had been stitched poorly, the doctors at the lab working to simply close the wound as swiftly as possible. Chad ground his teeth as he picked at one of the stitches. "Cheap bastards… Did they honestly think that just closing the wound would heal it? That his infection would heal the rest?" getting up, he limped into the back room, slinging a large shoulder bag onto his side. Kneeling beside the bed again, he went through some procedures before giving Sion a sedative, waiting until he fell asleep before using some anesthesia on his shoulder, working quickly.

"Only using regional anesthesia?" Bill asked, swinging his legs over the side of his bed to watch. "Pretty gutsy."

Chad pulled one of the stitches out quickly. "It's all I can really carry right now. I'd need more equipment to carry the more potent stuff. The sedative should keep Sion out for now though, and the anesthesia should make him comfortable."

"You carry less than a regular combat medic." Bill commented.

Chad looked back. "Well, keep in mind; I was supposed to be an infantryman/handyman."He patted his bag. "But now that I have this, I can work better." His bag had no distinguishing markings, but it carried the basic medical equipment for a combat medic*.

Bill nodded appreciatively. "Better make sure you don't slip up, out there, infected don't discriminate."

Chad nodded, pulling the last stitch out of Sion's shoulder. The Smoker was still sleeping, but even he couldn't help the involuntary twitches from having the stitches pulled, Sion's hands twitching slowly as Chad gingerly cleaned the wound out with a sterilized cloth. "Where's Zephyr?" he asked, placing a penlight in his teeth so he could illuminate the wound.

"With Zoey. She's helping her pick out some new clothing." Bill answered, Francis and Louis coming back with their arms full of supplies. "Kiddo's with them, and I haven't seen Ark. Figure he's still outside sniffing around."

Chad nodded and returned to his work, tuning out Francis and Louis's conversation so he could help Sion.

-page break-

"Sorry, Zephyr, but it's all I could find." Zoey apologized, holding out the black sleeveless top. "It's a bit on the large side."

Zephyr grabbed it and slid it on over her head. "It's fine. Better than walking around naked." As the top slid over her head, Zoey noticed a large horizontal scar running across Zephyr's chest, newly healed. Zephyr pulled the shirt down quickly enough, but it still left Zoey curious.

"What happened? I mean, with the scar on your chest?" she asked, shyly.

Zephyr picked at her top. "Oh, that? Got it from another Witch. I accidentally disturbed her, thinking that she was like me and I paid for it. It healed, but it taught me an important lesson: Just because they look like me, doesn't mean they act like me."

Zoey laughed. "We learn that lesson every waking moment out here."

Zephyr laughed softly. "You've got it the worst, being the only girl in this group of men. But then again, I guess you carry that gun around for more than just infected protection, mm?" she asked with a sly grin.

Zoey chuckled. "Nah, they haven't really tried. Francis and Louis are the ones I've gotta be wary of. Ark's like a big pet dog, and Sion doesn't seem to have any interest. What about you? Encounter many men who stare?"

Zephyr grinned evilly. "They stare at the eyes and chest, but totally forget what these are for." She lifted one hand, brandishing their claws. "Try to make an unwanted move on me, and you'll need an air tube for the rest of your days."

Zoey chuckled. "You've got no worries then. Come on, let's finish up and go see the others." She said, Zephyr tightening the buckle of her swiped military pants, before slipping on a pair of discarded boots.

"Men dig chicks in military garb." Zephyr chuckled, walking out after Zoey. Upon entering the room, she immediately spied Sion, heading over to him and kneeling beside his bed. "How is he?" she asked softly, her eyes gentle as Zane climbed onto her back.

Chad wiped off some more blood. "Alive. I cleaned out the wound properly, now to re-stitch it. Go and see if you can find Ark for me, ok?"

Zephyr nodded and got up, gliding outside the bunker to search for the Hunter. She looked up into the trees, half expecting to find him there, but was surprised to find him perched on the roof. "Something_ wrong?" _she asked softly.

Ark shook his head. "No_… I just wish Sion was up and better. His eyes could see through these trees better than I can. I'm fighting blind."_

Zephyr rested against the side of the building. "Calm_ down." _she looked up at him. "Ark_, you don't have to be on guard all the time. We're all here as a team, we can watch each other's backs as well as our own. Sion's injured, but it doesn't mean you have to be LOOKING for fights to keep us safe." _she brandished her claws. "Looking_ for fights brings nothing but unwanted attention."_

Ark sat back. "I_ wasn't looking for a fight…" _he defended.

"Looks_ that way to me. I mean, look at you. You're sitting up on a roof, ready to pounce at a moment's notice and perched in such a way that any brave infected would feel like challenging you." _Zephyr said. "The_ way you're sitting, you WANT someone to come to us. The whole point of coming out here was to hide for a while until everyone's better."_

Ark climbed down, his foot gently touching the ground as Zephyr gently cupped his chin, lifting his head. "We're_ all in this together, Ark. There is no need to be the hero who fights for us all."_

Ark smiled at Zephyr. "Thanks…" he said, the Witch gently embracing him. " Come on, let's go inside and seal this place up. Once that's done, I'll make you something to eat, okay?" Zephyr said, brushing some hair out of her face.

"BURGER!" Ark declared, leaping for the bunker, Zephyr laughing and following him, closing the steel door and barricading it from the outside world.

Soft music wafted through the air, a voice accompanying it. "When the moon sets red, best head back, lest you run into the devil…" a shadowed figure pushed aside a tree and looked up at the sky. " Unless y' out to make a deal, best head on home… for the devil don' play fair wit' no one…" he looked at the trees and sighed at the marks lining the trees. " For in the devil's land, y' ain't getting out, no matter how hard y' try… for the devil don' play fair wit' no one." He finished, settling against a tree stump and falling asleep.

-end chapter 19-

*combat medics carry a LOT of equipment on them, I was amazed at the sheer volume of it all!

Anyways, another get not a whole lot done chapter, but it's important to get to the NEXT hell hole, am I right? anyways, save the flames for someone who really cares, and I ain't one of them this time around. I recently lost my comp and had to replace it... WITH ALL OF MY DATA. SO LEAVE ME BE!


	20. Stranger

Chapter 20: Stranger

Disclaimer: I do not own left 4 dead

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You guys make me smile, you know? A year ago, I wouldn't have believed that this little story would EVER reach 500 reviews... you guys have made me truly happy! Thank you for everything!

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Zephyr watched as Ark slept, his head tucked under his pillow as he slowly pulled the blanket up in his sleep. She was curious as to what had changed the Hunter so much from the usual demeanor of the infected class. She was so used to Hunters and Smokers being backstabbing jerks who leapt foolishly at the survivors, their eyes and fangs sharpened with the loss of their humanity. She was also used to Hunters prowling behind their prey, snarling and drooling with the promise of a kill. Yet it was strange to her, watching this Hunter interact with the survivors like he was one of them.

From her knowledge of the infection, Hunters were the strangest of the infected, with no eyes to speak off. Using only sound and senses, they pounced on survivors and attempted to tear them to pieces. A lone wolf or in a pack, Hunters worked quickly and efficiently to remove stragglers or macho people and end their existence. It amazed her to see that Ark, acting as a lone wolf, had somehow gained their trust and attention and was diverting his attention to protecting his "friends" the survivors, and his "family, the other infected.

She wondered for a brief moment if Ark was merely playing along to gain a few kills out of the survivors, for it was common to see a Hunter helping a Smoker grab prey before stealing the kill, but the way Ark seemed to relax around them made her smile. Somehow, someway, meeting the survivors had awakened a small part of humanity that had tucked itself away in Ark, and the Hunter was trying his best to adapt, possibly to try and remain alive until a possible cure for the infection was found. That's what she was hoping for anyways, to be able to return to a sort of normalcy.

Sion was another mystery to her as well, the Smoker having an odd personality for the Smoker variety. Like his brethren, Sion usually preferred to avoid combat, often relying on a long ranged attack, but unlike the type, he seemed to have more logic in choosing his fights. She couldn't help but smile when she thought about him though, he seemed to have a large heart and a good head on his shoulders.

Turning, she looked over at the Smoker, brushing a strand of hair from her face. Sion was still sleeping, his face still covered in a thin layer of sweat. She knew that he was still feeling miserable, but he was showing clear signs of improvement. His skin was no longer completely flushed and while he still had a bit of trouble breathing, he was looking much better than how he looked in the lab. Chad was sleeping beside the bed, the rest of the survivors idling about outside. Zoey and Louis were outside talking, the conversation light and friendly, while Francis was sitting on top of the Hummer, humming to himself while keeping an eye out for infected. Zane was sitting up there with him as well, his eyes glowing faintly as he listened for any signs of life, Bill settling against the wall and getting some much needed rest.

Smiling, Zephyr rested against the wall and closed her eyes, drifting off.

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Ark yawned widely as he licked the roof of his mouth, stretching and shaking his head to get the sleep out of it, taking in his surroundings. Zoey and Francis were inside resting, Chad and Bill outside while Louis took watch over Sion, Zane and Zephyr both asleep, Zane snuggled in her arms. Smiling, he got up and headed outside to look around. Zephyr's words were still fresh in his mind, but he sat on the roof of the hummer anyways, greeting Chad and Bill.

"How Sion?" Ark asked, looking expectant.

Chad flipped his notebook open. "His injury is healing nicely, and I did give him some antibiotics to ease the pain and stave off infection. As for what's making him sick, his fever broke last night and while he still has some respiratory issues, it seems to be running its course."

Ark nodded, relieved. "So he recover?"

Chad nodded as well, smiling. "Yeah, he should be fine soon."

Ark smiled as Bill lit a cigarette, Chad snatching it from him. "That's bad for you, lay off them." Bill snatched it back, giving Chad a look that would have put him six feet under if looks could kill. Chad retreated again, Ark sitting and watching before taking in a deep breath, gathering the scents in the air again.

That same uneasy scent was still in the air, and it made Ark's hair stand on end. Though he had no idea as to who or what the scent belong to, every part of him was telling him to stay as far away as humanly possible. In every sense of the word, what he possibly smelled was the super predator of the area. His heart was instantly torn between what to do; find the source of the scent or run away. Looking back at the bunker, he shook his head with a groan. Sion still needed more time; he wasn't even fully awake yet. To run from the scent now would be putting the whole group at risk, due to someone having to carry Sion and someone having to protect him.

To attack the source was also suicidal, he had no idea what he would be up against and it could spell death for him and the survivors. Not to mention Zephyr had already more or less scolded him for acting as if he could take on the world by himself. Sighing, he sat back as the scent drifted away, the apparent danger passing for the moment. Chad lowered his gun and breathed a sigh of relief, hoping down from the hummer. "Dunno on what just went on, but I'm going to check on Sion." He headed for the bunker, freezing halfway there.

"What's wrong…?" Bill began, freezing as well. Ark turned to look, and his hands clenched involuntarily at what he saw. Sion was up and moving, but his movements were similar to that of someone heavily intoxicated, teetering back and forth while trying to remain upright. While his eyes were open, they were hazy and unfocused, seeming to zero in for a brief second before lapsing back to a foggy state. Zephyr was trying to help him stabilize his walking, but when she got too close, he hissed at her. Stopping, he leaned against the side of the bunker, exhaling smoke while trying to remain upright.

Worried, Ark landed beside Sion, tilting his head. "Sion… you okay?" he asked, speaking slowly and clearly. There had been many things he expected Sion to say or do, but hissing and swiping his hand at him was not one of them. "What's wrong?" he yelped, jumping back.

Zephyr stepped back as well. "He's out of it… I heard him wake up and begin to move, but it's like he doesn't really know we're here… can Chad sedate him so he'll go back to sleep?"

"I can sedate him again, but I'll need him still first. I don't have a tranquillizer gun, and I don't think he'd hold still long enough for me to do it anyways." Chad replied. "But don't make a habit of this."

Ark nodded and leapt at Sion, knocking him over and holding him still while Chad got the sedative, the ill Smoker freeing his leg and shoving his knee into Ark's gut, forcing the Hunter to wince in pain as he tore his other leg free, kicking Ark off him. Ark tumbled to the side, his leg bending under his body in an attempt to stick the landing and pounce again. His leg failed to cooperate with him though, and he fell to the ground, his awkward landing leaving him in pain.

Zephyr stepped up to the plate next, closing her hands together so her deadly claws wouldn't find a point of entry upon Sion's body, the Witch swinging her arm into Sion's injured shoulder, the Smoker howling in pain and falling back. She hated having to attack an obvious injury, but she pressed on, striking his shoulder again until he was on the ground, clutching his wounded shoulder in pain as Ark struggled to get upright, his leg refusing to cooperate with him because of his poor landing.

Sion was still collapsed in a heap on the ground, whining softly as the rest of the survivors came out, awoken by all the commotion. Zephyr had him pinned, but it was a clear sign that she was losing ground with keeping him pinned, she didn't want to hurt him anymore than she already had. "What happened here?" Zoey asked as Chad rolled Sion over, trying to pull the jacket aside so he could put some more painkillers close to the wound.

"He's a little out of it." Chad grunted, his task being made difficult by Sion's attempts to keep the jacket on. " Damn, stop squirming!- Maybe the medicine I gave him is having a bad effect on him - I SAID STOP MOVING- but I'm no expert on infected." By that time, Chad had forcibly pulled Sion's arms behind his back uncomfortably, administering the sedative into his injured shoulder along with some painkillers. Sion's eyes were flickering wildly between various shades of gold before fading to its original brown as he fell asleep again, his head sliding to the ground. "There…" Chad said softly, his head snapping up to look at the trees as the branches ruffled slightly.

"Looks like he's having a bad day." A voice said softly. "But then again, I'd be too, if I had that happen to me."

Ark instantly growled, but a look from Zephyr shut him up as everyone began to gather to look at their strange guest. Propped up against the tree was a man who looked to be older than Sion, though not by much. His long hair was draping over his face, his eyes being framed by long bangs. Despite being tall, he had a thin frame, comparable to a woman. Fierce eyes shone under the dark strands, the soft gaze holding little to no doors to the secrets held within them. Standing at six foot two, he cut a rather odd figure against the tree, but threatening nonetheless. Bill couldn't determine the color of the stranger's eyes from where he stood, but he made no effort to move closer.

Ark gazed at the stranger, the source of the uneasy scent, and was unsure of whether he should relax or freak out. His Hunter instincts were telling him; 'easy prey, nothing to fear' while a deeper part of his instincts was telling him; 'Do NOT go near this man, he WILL KILL you.' Unsure of which side to obey, he settled for being extremely cautious, Zoey taking the initiative.

"Who are you? Where did you come from?" she asked, her figure relaxing to try and make their guest feel more at ease. "Are you a survivor from the camp?"

"There's a camp nearby? I was unaware of it." The man said, his eyes narrowing. "And I refuse to give you my name. It makes it harder to kill someone when you know their name."

"Friendly, isn't he?" Louis whispered to Chad, the medic agreeing. "Where's Zane?"

Chad gestured back to the bunker. "Inside. I told him to stay inside when he offered to watch with us earlier. With any luck, he'll still be inside."

Louis nodded and looked back at their unnamed guest, who was looking everyone over. Unnerved by his rather rude response, Zoey licked her lips and tried again, Bill and Francis remaining silent. "Where are you from? Did you escape the city, like us?"

"No. I came from New Orleans." Their guest responded, a bit of southern flair on the way he pronounced New Orleans. "Looking for signs of my family. "

"If they ain't at the nearby camps, chances are, they're dead." Francis said bluntly, Zoey shooting him a glare. Bill said nothing, still sizing up their guest while remaining in front of Zephyr, blocking her from the view of the stranger. All his years of service had taught him to observe his target closely before shooting, never aim when you can negotiate. To him, their guest seemed rather withdrawn from the world around him, if the thousand yard stare was any indication. The others, save for Chad, had never experienced such a sight, but it was one he knew all too well.

Many times, he had seen that same look in the eyes of fellow soldiers, the look of detachment from the world and all it had to offer. Usually, that sight was only seen after a particularly bloody battle, but the look in the stranger's eyes suggested that he had lost something that was very close to his heart instead of serving in the military. A spouse or a sibling perhaps, judging by the sheer depth of the far away gaze. But in those eyes also burned a passionate hate, one that shouldn't be trifled with or even approached. Shouldering his gun, Bill turned to look at Sion. Still too close to call the Smoker's condition, it was better to just send the stranger on his way than confront him.

"You need something, son?" he asked, his voice laced with a cautious tone. "Cause the camp's past us by a few miles. If you're looking for someone, you'd best start there."

The man sighed. "I had best look elsewhere then." He turned back to the forest. "Your Smoker friend. He'll recover in a day or so, the effects don't last very long. They must have treated him for it at the lab."

"H-how did you know…?" Louis stammered, looking back at Sion and the others.

The man turned to face them. "I'm not blind or dumb. He exhales smoke that is not of cigarette nature, so he must be a Smoker. His face is flushed and he's hallucinating, so he's sick. Any points I've missed?"

"_Rude bastard_." Ark growled softly.

The man's eyebrow twitched, but he pushed it aside. "I approached you to ask about the location of the forest encampment. I am unfamiliar with this area. "

Chad got up, pointing into the trees. "Head this way, until you find the river. Follow it downstream until you find the encampment. But it's far away, a few days travel."

"I'll be just fine." The man said, heading for the trees. Stopping, he turned and propped himself up against the tree again. "I'll leave another time. It's not safe for the moment."

"A little chicken about going?" Francis teased.

"No, I enjoy your company so much; I can't bear to leave it." Came the sarcastic remark. "It's not safe right now."

Francis was about to say something about their guest that wasn't the least bit kind, but Louis cut him off by clearing his throat. "Right… uh, we'll leave you here for now… call if you need anything." He said, shoving the others inside to talk about their strange arrival.

"Alright, I'm officially putting this on my strange list." He said when everyone was inside. "This is one of the strangest things I've ever seen. And that's saying a lot since the infection broke out, okay? We get a guy here who looks like no one I've ever met before, talks as if we're not intelligent enough to understand him, and is alone. Is that not raising any alarm bells in ANYONE'S head?"

Francis cracked his knuckles. "Whatever he's got working for him, can't be tougher than what we've had to endure. I mean, that hospital was fucked up to the core. I dunno if pretty boy outside had to deal with any of that."

Zoey sighed. "I'm just worried about Sion… he knew that Sion was a Smoker, and I'm sure he knows that Zephyr's a Witch. Is it really that easy to tell?"

Bill held up his hand. "In all honesty, Sion's giving off a lot of smoke, and that's a clear sign to anyone with their eyes open."

Ark slunk away to go check on Sion as the survivors kept talking. He sat on the chair and watched Sion, his eyes watching the Smoker as he shifted in the bed. Sion was already starting to wake up, the sedative running through his system. He could only guess that Chad had used a weaker sedative on the Smoker, and only time would tell whether Sion was recovering as Chad had predicted. When Sion's brown eyes opened and he gave Ark a small smile though, the Hunter was immensely relieved. "_Morning._" He said with a smile, happy to see his friend.

Sion chuckled softly. _"Morning… man do I hurt."_

_"You took a beating. Chad fixed you up._" Ark said, keeping a smile on his face.

Sion closed one eye. _"Yeah… I scared myself too. Something went wrong with my eyes… everyone was an infected to me, and they all were out to get me. You and Zephyr looked normal, but you weren't helping. I guess the medicine had a nasty effect on me. Gotta tell Chad not to use that one again."_

"_I'll let him know_." Ark said. "_Later. Right now, I just want to talk to my good friend."_

Sion finally smiled back. _"I hear that. I've missed your odd outlook on life._"

_"Welcome back, Sion._" Ark smiled, this time for real.

Outside, despite not knowing what the two were saying, Bill half-smiled before returning to his post, dragging the other survivors up there with him, keeping an eye on their strange guest.

* * *

Zane licked his lips nervously as he approached the tree that the stranger was propped up against. He had encountered many people before and during the infection, and currently, this stranger and his father was in the top running for the scariest person. The man was taller than his father, and despite being thinner, cut the same imposing figure. He shuddered as he thought of his father, catching the man's attention.

"What's wrong with you, child?" the man asked.

Zane stopped shivering when he realized that he was being addressed. "I was just thinking of my father… not happy memories."

The man lifted his head slightly to look at the young child before him, a soft smile touching his lips. "Talk, I'll listen to your story." He said soothingly, inviting the child to sit with him. He wasn't too surprised when Zane hopped into his lap, snuggling against his chest. Slowly, he set his hand on Zane's head and patted his hair softly as the child began to speak.

"My dad… wasn't a kind person. Far from it. He hated me. He always said I was what ruined the relationship between him and my mom and he often acted as if I never existed. My mom… she fell in love with him because he was everything she ever wanted. Rich, good-looking, honest, kind, and great with kids… when he was acting. When she married him and had me… she got to see what he really was. But no matter how drunk he was or how stoned he was on any drug… he never left a mark on me or her. That was how he stayed safe… yelling was one thing, bruises were another."

Zane shuddered softly again, the man humming gently under his breath to soothe the child.

"Continue." He urged softly. "It's better to let it all out." He figured that Zane needed to get this off his chest, seeing as how he willingly leapt onto a stranger's lap and began talking, and he was willing to sit and listen for the moment.

Zane continued on. "The worst day was when he got laid off from work. As usual, it was my mom's fault, as well as my own. But instead of the usual yelling… he actually beat us that time. My mom needed stitches in her hand … and I was in a wheelchair for a while because he took a knife… we got lucky that a neighbor heard the screams. He was arrested… haven't seen him since. Doubt… I'll ever see either of them again." Tears were sliding down his cheeks.

The man sighed, gently ruffling Zane's hair. To him, it was unfair… for a child to be given such a harsh hand in life, and then with the infection… he sighed and kept stroking Zane's hair. " Where are you guys headed from here?" he asked, Zane shrugging.

" I dunno. The last camp was bad, so Ark wanted to leave, so I guess we're trying the forest camp… see if it's any good. " Zane played with his hair as he sat in the strangers lap. " But then… I really don't know what's going on anymore. Ark and the others kept telling me that when we escaped the city, things would be better. I mean, I'm thankful that mom's back… but Sion's so sick. It's not really fair."

" Life isn't fair, child. But one thing I've always been told is that no matter how bad life is… there is always someone out there who has it worse than you. Besides… Sion will recover. It's not too deep in his system."

Zane scrunched his nose. " Okay… where are you going…?"

The man gently set Zane on the ground, brushing himself off. " To the forest encampment. I need to find my family before its too late."

Zane watched the man head into the trees, lifting his hand to wave goodbye to the man. " I hope you find your family... mister." he finished, not knowing what to call the man.

"...Desert." The man said, turning his head. " That's what my name is for now. It'll remain that way until I find my family."

He stopped and looked back at Zane. " If your family ever needs a place for a while... I have a home in Louisiana." he let the comment hang in the air before leaving, bidding Zane a soft farewell.

Zane watched Desert weave through the trees, quickly disappearing as if he had never been there in the first place, a soft song wafting on the wind as he left. Turning, Zane headed back for the bunker, coming inside, only to be scolded by Zephyr. " Where were you?" she demanded.

Zane wrung his hands nervously. " Talking with the man who showed up... he's a little hard to talk to, but he's a good guy."

Zephyr patted Zane on the head. " It's all right. There are people out there who are like that." she lifted Zane onto her lap. " And thankfully, Sion's looking better. We should be able to leave soon. All we have to do is wait."

* * *

Desert climbed a tree, sitting on one of the higher branches, chuckling softly as he heard the cry of an upset Hunter, snickering when he picked out the words.

" ARGH, I LEFT MY XBOX!"

* * *

End Chapter 20

Again, you guys have no idea how happy you've made me. This, thankfully, is the last of the "downtime" chapters, so things should get moving again real soon. However, I do have a question to ask. In the Sacrifice, Bill dies. Should this story follow the same route, and canonically let Bill die? Or should I keep doing as I've been doing and ignoring the actual storyline?


	21. Forest

Chapter 21: Forest

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead

* * *

The next morning, Sion was looking well enough to begin moving again, and while Chad didn't say he was fully healed, he agreed that they should keep moving. After managing to refuel their escape vehicle, they all piled in. It had taken the better part of the night to convince Ark that he didn't need to go back to the camp to get the xbox, and now he was curled up in the corner, sulking.

" Geez, Ark, it's not like we can use the darn thing in a fight!" Zoey pointed out, sitting with her legs crossed. " All it would do is get in the way." she was trying to reason with the upset Hunter, the rest of the group leaving the task to her.

" But I won it..." Ark whined. He had been very proud of winning the small competition at the camp, one of the few things he had enjoyed there. Chad laughed softly at the sight of Zoey arguing with Ark before looking around the room at everyone. He had his bag slung over his shoulder and secured tightly, the loose flap being toyed with by Zane. Aside from Zoey and Ark's conversation, the rest of the ride was rather quiet, the silence becoming a bit unnerving.

Francis was amusing himself by cleaning out his weapon, Bill having taken over the driver's seat with Louis as his passenger. Zephyr was quietly sitting in her seat, her red eyes softly glowing as she looked everyone over, Sion curled up on one of the seats.

" So, is this forest encampment any good?" Bill called back to Chad, never taking his eyes off the trail. " Because the forest is a lousy place to hide out for a while, if you ask me. Sure there's cover, but what can cover you can also cover them."

Chad picked at his hair, the long bangs flopping over his face. Since he no longer had any access to luxuries like a brush and hair gel, his neatly slicked back hair had returned to how it normally was, long and sometimes unkept. "Well, I heard from the people who were stationed there, that the infected population seems to be very low in that forest. It seems to be mostly commons in those woods, rarely any special types."

Zoey looked away from Ark. " I guess we'll be safe for a little while there then. If there's no lab with crazy people experimenting on infected there that is."

Louis nodded in agreement. " I was thinking about that too. What kind of idiot would capture infected and bring them to a facility with an evacuation camp so close by?"

Chad shrugged. " To be honest, you're asking the wrong guy. I have no idea what the military was thinking, much less of an idea as to why they even put Bianca in charge of all of the infected. I mean, I've heard rumors, but not much else."

Bill stopped the vehicle with a sharp curse, Sion tumbling from his seat and falling to the floor, giving the veteran a startled expression. Bill forced open the door with a grumble, grabbing his gun and getting out. " We're walking from here. It's too dense to go any further." he said darkly, gesturing to the darkened trees.

" I hate camping." Francis grumbled as they all loaded out. " Ain't nothing but trouble." he cocked his shotgun and looked into the trees, searching for signs of the infected. Only a few commons were loitering around, staring blankly at the environment as Zoey looked at them through the scope of the rifle she was now carrying.

" Well, it seems as if they're more interested in the landscape." she said cheerfully. " Plenty of time to pick them off and make our way to the next encampment."

Zane climbed up onto Zephyr's shoulders, his head swiveling to look around. " Is it raining somewhere?" he asked, looking at the group. "I hear rain..." Zephyr shook her head. " It might be something in the forest." she concluded, gesturing with a long claw. "We'll just have to be careful."

Zoey looked through her rifle scope again, watching Ark and Sion checking out the line of trees before checking to make sure the common's hadn't moved, almost dropping her scope at the sight before her. Hidden within the treelines was one of those things they called a Shooter, and it was currently eating the innards of a Hunter, blood dripping down it's jaws as it tore at the body, it's large claws keeping it's now dead prey still. She backed up slowly, trying not to alert it, but warn the others. " Guys... we've got one of those things nearby... " she said warily, Sion picking up on her words and backing away from the trees.

Francis took the scope from Zoey and observed the Shooter next, putting down the rifle. " Well, now we know why there aren't any special zombies around here."

Bill lit his cigarette. " They're strong, but they ain't that strong... no way those things could ever kill a Tank."

Louis called to them from the other side of the vehicle. " But they're more than a match for a lone special... let's find another way."

* * *

They regrouped on the other side of the vehicle, giving the Shooter a wide berth as they headed into the forest. For safety, they organized themselves into different groups. Francis, Bill, Sion, and Ark made up the frontal assault, Bill and Francis equipped with a assault rifle and a pump shotgun. Sion was given a second pistol, and Ark was forced to take a pistol as well, though he still preferred his claws.

The rear group was Louis, Zoey, Zane and Zephyr. Zephyr wanted to be in the front group, but Bill had stated that as a Witch, Zephyr might accidentally be shot at by the team out of reflex, so she agreed to stay behind in the rear group. Zoey was carrying a Hunting rifle and Louis toted a submachine gun. Zane was the only one unarmed, and he was walking along with Zephyr, his little hand tightly clutching hers. Chad was in the middle, armed with all of the special tools and dual pistols of his own, ready to use a molotov if the situation called for it, though he didn't feel like starting a forest fire.

It didn't take too long before the group noticed something wrong with Sion. He was still moving and talking just fine, but it seemed as if his ability to aim had taken a hit from the experiments, it now took several scattered shots to kill a small group of infected where it used to only take a few well aimed shots. Showing concern, Bill made put Sion into the middle with Chad, to better protect him until he had fully recovered. Sion had made a bit of a fuss about it, but reluctantly agreed to remain in the middle.

Ark crept along, sniffing the air as he tried to find any signs of humanity, Bill searching the worn out trail for tracks, looking for any signs that it had been traversed in the last few days. " Someone's used this trail, but I don't know if it's any good." Bill finally reported, standing up. " Signs point to a pair having come through here."

" Don't know if it's any good? Your eyes failing on you again, old man?" Francis teased. " You should get a pair of glasses."

Bill gave him a scathing look before gesturing to the bushes. " There's signs of people having shoved aside the bushes and stepping on the foliage surrounding it. But it's only dented, not smashed, so the person was possibly barefoot. The other person was wearing boots, but walking at a much slower pace behind the first person, as if being led around."

Louis was impressed. " Wow, I bet that came from your training, didn't it?" he said cheerfully, admiration for the older man clear in his voice. " I mean, what you used to do in the military. Did you learn that kind of thing, Chad?" he asked, looking at the combat medic.

Chad shook his head. " No, in the old days, combat medics were non combatants. Bill could tell you more about it." he looked over at the veteran, who nodded, adjusting his hat. " In the days of World War II, field doctors wore a bright band with a red cross on it. It meant that they were exempt from the battlefield under the Geneva convention. If a medic picked up a gun though, they were no longer protected under that law. To kill a medic in those days was a war crime." Bill explained.

Francis lifted a branch. " So you basically chose the job that let you say you were a soldier, but kept you as far away from the battlefield as possible? What a wuss." he snorted, Chad looking offended.

" Uh guys? Less trying to make the other feel bad, more zombie killing. " Zoey piped up, Zane and Zephyr agreeing. " Those zombies aren't going to kill themselves."

Louis picked off an infected and stopped to listen, Zoey doing the same. " So, what's the plan? Does anyone know where we're going? I mean, I know we're going to the forest encampment, but how are we gonna get there?"

Chad gestured at the trees. " There's a trail 'round the other side..." he turned and ran as a Tank came barreling through the trees he was pointing at. It had taken the whole group by surprise, and the group scattered to avoid the swinging fists of the Tank. With the plenty of things to throw around the area, the Tank bellowed in delight as it lifted a massive trunk and tossed it in Bill's direction. Still agile for his age, Bill dodged out of the way, pulling Francis out of the path of the flung lumber, the biker giving a sour but thankful look to the veteran.

" Spread out!" Louis cried as the Tank swung at him. " But don't get too far!"

" Tell that to HIM!" Sion barked as he dodged a flying log.

" Clever bastard... set a trap for us." Bill grumbled, evaluating the situation. With the Shooter on the other side of the area, the Tank had effectively managed to limit them to one area, and had plenty of throwing ammunition. Judging by the way that his foot dug into the soil beneath them, he figured that the surrounding area was damp, and a molotov would have very little effect. One of their carefully coveted pipe bombs would do them no good either, their only tactic was to dodge around and pepper it with gunfire until it fell.

Ducking back, he reloaded his assault rifle and let fly with the bullets as the Tank charged for Louis, the darker-skinned man sprinting away from the Tank, buying some time for the group to shoot at it. Francis grabbed a large branch from the nearest tree and threw it at the Tank's head, the massive infected turning to face him, Zoey taking a turn to aim at it's head and fire repeatedly.

Ark had never felt this useless before, unable to do anything. He could leap at the Tank, but all that would result in would be another bruise to add to his collection, not to mention having to be rescued from the Tank. Zephyr was feeling the same way, her long claws flexing as she had no choice but to retreat with Zane in tow. Despite being another infected that survivors didn't want to tangle with, she too was not much of a match for the deadly Tank. Only Sion was able to help the survivors, and even then, only a little bit because of the dual pistols.

" We're useless here..." Ark said sadly. " _Can't protect them..."_

The situation turned worse when the Tank slugged the vehicle that they had been driving in, cutting Zoey and Louis away from Bill and Francis, Zephyr leaping into action. Screeching, she slashed at the Tank's leg, ducking when the fist was swung her way, returning to attack his vunerable leg as Ark leapt to where Zoey and Louis was, Zane riding on his back. The Tank bellowed and punched the vehicle again, the vehicle smashing into the trees, Zephyr crawling out from behind it, dazed. She hadn't recieved the full blow of the car's impact, but it was still enough to disorient her, the Tank grabbing her and tossing her away as an angry screech and rattling sounds could be heard, the aggravated Shooter charging through the trees towards Bill and Francis.

" You've got to be SHITTING me!" Francis roared, turning his attention to the Shooter as the Tank began to stagger. Sion drew back before opening his mouth and shooting his tongue out, wrapping it around the Tank's meaty fist, throwing off it's attack for a second. Bill was limping from getting hit by a chunk of debris but still firing at the Tank, Louis managing to get back over the vehicle to fire at the Shooter, which was clawing at Francis, the biker using the trees as cover from it's spine attack.

Ark helped Zephyr back up, the Witch giving him a grateful smile before motioning that he should go find Zoey before something else shows up. Getting to his feet, Ark sniffed the air, searching for her and yelping when a spine pierced his arm, the Shooter bellowing before charging at him. While it was not the fastest of the infected, the paralyzing effects of it's spines was next to immediate, Ark clutching his arm before crouching, leaping awkwardly into a tree branch. He was forced to climb higher when the Shooter dug it's claws into the tree and started to climb after him.

Zane scrambled over the tree, looking for Zoey. " Miss Zoey!" he called. " Where are you?"

" I'm over here, I need some help!" Zoey called from behind the vehicle. Part of the vehicle was sitting on her leg and she was trying to remove her leg from the twisted metal. " It's not going well." she said sadly. Zane climbed down and tried to help move the metal, pushing on it but stopping when Zoey hissed. " Damn it!" she said, gritting her teeth. " It hurts like hell! Zane, go get the others, I'll defend myself here."

Zane looked back at her with hesitant eyes, Zoey waving her hand. " Go!" she ordered, the child screamer scrambling back over the vehicle, scanning the scene. Bill and Francis were firing at the Shooter, the upset infected turning to face them and clawing at them, their bullets tearing spines off it's body. While it wasn't nearly as strong as the Tank, it was certainly persistent, swiping at the air while chasing Bill, Louis stepping over the body of the dead Tank to join the fight.

Sion dared not use his tongue on the Shooter's arms, reloading his pistols and aiming again. He noticed that Chad seemed to be nowhwere nearby, he guessed that the sight of the Tank at such close range had spooked him pretty badly. Returning to the fight, he shouted up to Ark to get down the tree and help, noting Zane looking all over the place, frightened.

* * *

Chad was actually having a rough time of himself, kicking a Hunter that had pounced on him away, swinging his knife at it with a growl. He had indeed been startled when the Tank attacked, running to the vehicle for cover, but was pounced on by a Hunter that had been lying in wait for someone to return. He had no idea as to where his gun had gone, having had it torn out of his hands by said Hunter and was using the knife as his only means of defense. Looking at the Hunter's sharp claws as it tried again to pounce on him, he looked at his knife and sighed. " Like bringing a knife to a gunfight."

Looking around, he managed to find his gun and picked it back up, dodging the Hunter again before shouting his thanks to Louis, who nailed the Hunter with some well aimed shots. Breathing a sigh of relief, he slumped against the tree. He jumped a foot when Zane came running at him, looking panicked. " Don't do that, Zane! I could have shot you!" he shouted, exasperated.

Zane pointed back at the smashed vehicle. " Zoey's behind the vehicle, and she needs help!" the young screamer cried. Chad looked up at the vehicle and nodded, sprinting for the vehicle and wishing it wasn't so far away from the others, searching for Zoey.

* * *

Zoey grimaced as she tried again to pull part of the vehicle off her leg. By now, she figured out her leg was pinned by what she thought was a part of the vehicle, and it was leaving her vulnerable. If a horde came along now... she would get hurt something terrible. " I need some help here!" she called out, the bushes crunching behind her. Turning her head, she looked up into the eyes of a man, who was giving her the most violent glare she had ever seen. Even the stranger that had visited them a day before didn't cast this much of a shadow. Walking around to face her, he placed one steel-toed boot on the tangled mess of rubber and metal and stepped on it, Zoey yelping in pain as he leaned over to look at her.

Dark brown eyes that appeared almost black gave her a cold stare as the man rubbed one gloved hand over his black shirt, smoothing it out over his blue denim jeans. Guns were firmly strapped to the man's sides and back, a hat covering up his brown hair. " Another survivor..." Zoey whispered, the man glaring and pressing his foot deeper into the tangled mess.

" You look like you've been all around..." the man said, his voice deep and devoid of feeling except for hate. " Seen any of those Hunters around here?"

Zoey grimaced as she tried to pull her leg free again. " We've killed a few..." she told him through clenched teeth.

The man gritted his teeth before giving her a smile she didn't like in the slightest. " Seen a big one? Piece of crap stole something from me."

" And you want it back?" Zoey finished, knowing this particular line already.

" No, not really. Damned thing can keep it if he wants. I'm just going to kill him for managing to get it from me." the man said, pulling one of his guns loose. He kicked the metal aside, freeing Zoey's leg, putting his foot back on the ground. "Red's a nice color on you, girl... You should wear more of it." with that, he grazed her leg with a bullet, kneeling as she yelped and clutched at her leg.

" So... now that I have your undivided attention, my dear, do you recall seeing a really big Hunter? Answer me truthfully, and I won't give you a nice red hat to go with your outfit, if you catch my drift." he smiled. " I'd hate for your friends to have to find your mangled corpse somewhere because you decided to not answer me. I'd also hate to have to strangle the Hunter you've been dragging around as a pet. But I guess I can give you a deal. Either you help point me in the right direction of my target, or I take your little Hunter with me to lure his daddy out."

Zoey let out a muffled yelp of surprise, the man kicking her to the ground with a snarl as the fighting continued on in the background.

" So, which will it be?"

* * *

Mini-sode: What happened during the time Sion was sick and couldn't be moved?

Zoey smiled as she walked into the bunker, observing Ark. From the little curious Hunter she found bleeding in the rain, he had grown into a capable fighter and a good friend. Watching him taking vigilance beside his friend's side reminded her that Hunters were good fighting partners with Smokers, and despite the differences between the two, Ark and Sion had become good friends.

Ark loved the thrill of the hunt, and immersed himself head first into battles with the horde to satisfy his lust to hunt. Sometimes, it was a bit horrifying to see him trotting back covered in random parts, but it saved ammunition, which was very important when ammo was running low in some areas. Sion preffered longer ranged battles, and was as effecient with a gun as Louis was with a piece of electronics. His nature also helped to provide a bit of logic to situations where Ark usually preffered to rushing in, no plan whatsoever. He was the more level headed of the two as well, often calming Ark down in dire situations when she couldn't do it.

But now wasn't the time for reflections, now was time for a little of the silver lining to the cloud of depression hanging over them all. " Oh Ark..." she called, waving a bag in front of her. " I have something I want you to try..." she smiled sweetly. Sure, it would cost a little of the things they had snagged from the camp, but anything for a bit of entertainment.

Ark obidently came to her, looking at her with curious eyes as she held up a drink. " Here, you must be thirsty." she said, handing him the energy drink. " We have more, and I already had one." Ark gave her a big smile and eagerly popped the drink open with his claws, guzzling it down.

-one hour later...-

Francis looked at Zoey. " You get all sorts of pissed if I mess with him, but if you mess with him, it's fair game?" he asked, watching Ark go crazy in the tree line, buzzed by the energy drink. Zoey leaned back in her chair, gingerly sipping a drink of her own.

" Sometimes, you have to create your own entertainment, Francis."

* * *

Chapter 21 and yet anothe bastard on the loose. This guy doesn't seem to play though, and surviving... every man for himself, I guess. Ciao for now!


	22. Talk

Chapter 22: Talk

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead

* * *

Well now, more of the forest scenes... man I hope to get past that soon. I've been playing Left 4 Dead 2 like a crazy person, and while I haven't played the passing yet ( Chibi - Severe reluctance to admit Bill's dead) I'm having a lot of fun.

* * *

Zoey winced as she tried to pull her leg closer to her body, trying to take it all in. Ark having a father? Not likely. He couldn't even remember his own name, let alone something like that. But Hunters sometimes traveled in groups, so it was possible that the man before her was after the leader of the pack. Biting her lip, she slid backwards. " What do you want with Ark...?" she asked warily.

The man looked genuinely surprised, rubbing his chin with one hand. " Ark? Coulda sworn his name was... nevermind, ain't important. Look, miss. Either you give him to me, or point me in the direction of his father. If you have the son, the father isn't very far behind, so you have to had seen him at least once."

" I honestly don't know what you're talking about!" Zoey cried. " Ark's been with us for a while, and not once have we seen a bigger Hunter! But you're not taking him with you-" her voice died as he pressed a gun barrel to her head.

" You obviously aren't thinking straight." the man said dangerously. " If I shot you now, it would be an instantaneous kill and there would be nothing you or your teammates could do about it. Now, I'm being nice, and ASKING for you to give me the hunter so I can be on my way, but the asking stops if you're gonna play the heroine. In this world, sweetie, there is no protecting the others, no teamwork. It's called taking what you want and using who you want so you can live another day. Never care about their well being, only about your own. If they die, there's another person a few days away who's just as desperate and determined to take advantage of their rotting corpse, so take advantage first." He slowly dragged the gun down her cheeks, lifting her chin with it. " It's a dog eat dog world out there now, so hunt, or be hunted."

Zoey glared at him, her eyes cold and unflinching as she burned holes in the man's face. This guy cared nothing of survival, just some petty revenge that was probably misplaced. Any other infected that she had seen was driven by rage and attacking survivors blindly. Attacking that which was different from them. But then again, wasn't that what they were doing for survival as well? Killing the infected as they rushed towards them, the desire to live overriding everything. Her and the other survivors could complain all they wanted, but they were all victims. The infected and the Survivors, predator and prey. All victims of the green flu.

The man locked eyes with her for a moment, sighing as he reached into his pockets. " I'm sick of this now. Looks like I'm not getting what I want today. Word of advice, don't even think of heading south. If you thought it was hell up here, then you haven't experienced true hell. " he took out a vial of green liquid and threw it at Chad, who had just arrived and was about to draw his gun, walking away as a horde started to swarm the medic, Zoey snapping out of her trance and aiding Chad as the man left, presumably to go make some more plans. He was currently at a dead end with his search, but things were starting to look up.

Chad sputtered and wiped his eyes. " What is this crap? It smells like Boomer vomit!" he said, the horde charging for him.

" Ten to one says it is." Francis said, watching Chad get jumped by several commons, Louis rushing to save him, Bill hurrying to Zoey's side. " You all right, Zoey?" he asked, helping her to her feet. Zoey nodded, clutching her leg tightly. " Yeah. A strange guy approached me, another survivor, but he didn't stick around long." she said, the veteran lighting another cigarette.

" Did he say anything, or was he just passing through?" Louis asked, Chad wiping himself down. Zoey looked over at Ark and Sion, who had just now joined the conversation,Zephyr and Zane in tow before shaking her head. " No... he was just passing through." she lied, picking up her pistol that had fallen. Bill's gaze told her that he saw right through her little lie, but as long as the others were fooled, she would feel better. They were all pretty pissed already about having to leave the encampment, and something like this would make the mood worse. Looking at Ark, who was expressing concern over her injured leg, she sighed again, wondering how much of the man's tale was true. He seemed too malicious to be making up on the spot, but she had no way of knowing how much was the truth, damned if she was gonna track him down to ask.

" Hey Ark? Before you started following us, were you part of a pack?" she asked. " I mean, like a group of Hunters, all searching for things to pounce?" At her question, Ark hesitated for a minute, as if searching his memories before shaking his head. " No..." he said finally, Chad kneeling to look at Zoey's leg. Zoey gave him a pleading expression, almost begging him to search again and come up with something to ease her nerves, but he looked into her eyes with a soft expression, one that said he had nothing to recall.

Sighing heavily, she looked over at the vehicle. " Well, our ride's busted... so we walk?" she said, trying to lift the mood and encourage everyone to keep moving. Louis and Bill nodded, both not looking forward to the walk. Francis's mood was even worse, the man grumbling and kicking at pieces of metal, presumably cursing the Tank from earlier. Only the infected of the group seemed unfazed, Zane in Zephyr's arms, staring at Zoey.

With his sensitive ears, he had heard the whole conversation, but since Zoey was avoiding the conversation, he felt that it was bad to try and bring it up. Whoever that was was definetly unnerving, and if his ears weren't failing him, he was still nearby, lying in wait.

Once Chad was done treating Zoey's leg, the group pressed on, searching for the trail that Chad was trying to point out to them, finding the shattered remains of another vehicle and several bodies laying around it, all unfortunate survivors. " Poor guys..." Chad said softly, taking a blanket and spreading it over the bodies. " Looks like they were all attacked before they could reach safety."

Bill tugged his hat further over his face. " That's the fate that awaits us if we don't get moving. There's nothing we can do for them, except show them a small mercy by covering their faces." It was cruel, leaving the bodies like that to rot, but they had no time to bury the bodies, doing so would only draw attention to themselves. The best they really could do was as Bill said. Cover their faces, and tread around the bodies to give them respect in their final resting place. Maybe when all this blew over, they would be able to respect the dead with a candle funeral or something, a small sign that at least someone cared.

As if reading their minds, Zephyr held up a single flower that she had picked from the ground, blowing the petals in the air. " All the candles in the world would not match that which we have lost." she said softly. " For the winds of fate have snuffed these candles, never to be lit again." Her red eyes shone softly as she hugged Zane to her chest, sighing softly. " We have to keep going." She walked forward with a soft noise, following the trail. Everyone remained quiet for a while, save for the occasional shot at a wandering infected, the silence in the air leaving everyone with their thoughts. Zoey was mulling over everything the man had said, Bill and the rest of the survivors were trying to find the route to the forest. Only the infected crew seemed to have extremely scattered thoughts, Zephyr's for the lost survivors, Zane and Sion over their mysterious guest from before, and Ark's of a diffferent nature all togehter.

" How long has it been last since I had a burger?" he asked himself, whining.

* * *

When the group had to stop for the night, the mood of the group was somber, and conversation was minimal. Finding the remains of a camping site, Bill motioned for everyone to gather the supplies and move against the dented armored truck. " We'll rest here. It ain't no safe house, but we're in the middle of the forest, and we can't afford to be exhausted out here. Since we're out in the open, Francis and I will take the first watch, and you guys can fight over the second." Louis and Zoey had no problems with getting an early rest, Chad and Sion agreeing to take the second watch. Ark wanted to take watch as well, but Bill firmly told him to stick to their little camp as an early warning system. Even with a watch, they couldn't risk letting everyone remain asleep and be taken off guard if a horde approached. Even with a good sight range, accidents could happen.

Ark resigned himself to sitting next to the sleeping bags, not trying to think of how hungry he was. He hadn't eaten all that much since they left the encampment, and his stomach was starting to complain about it's lack of food. But at the same time, they all weren't feeling the greatest. Bill's leg was doing much better, and Sion was practicing on his aim with a rubber band, but morale and health was at an all time low. If they were to get anywhere fast, at the very least, they could get some good rest. Food would just have to wait until they found a decent safe place, preferrably a safe house, which usually had some sort of food in it.

Sighing, he picked at his long claws, taking note of the length. They were chipped in a few places and cracked, but still held strong, and he often wondered what they were made of. But because they were his main weapon, he had to take better care of them, or risk losing a valued tool. Gritting his teeth, he dragged his nails across the ground, frustrated with how brittle they were. In this case, it would just be wiser to tear them off and wait for them to grow back again.

Ark lifted his head and smiled as Sion walked over to him, the Smoker settling beside him. " What's up? You look pretty down." Sion said softly, nudging Ark in the shoulders. "Did something happen?"

Ark sighed and looked back at him. "_I wish I knew how to use a gun better... I was no help in that fight. All I could do was run like a scared little child..." _he sighed again, flexing his hands. " _I couldn't fight the Tank or the Shooter, and I guess I'm upset over it."_

Sion patted him on the back. " _Don't feel too bad, I wasn't much help either. But I guess there are somethings we can't do. We're not gods or heros, Ark. We're just victims of the infection trying to survive, no matter the we can do is do what we can to help them, and oursleves. Sticking together is the only way to survive. Act as a team. Sometimes, there's nothing we can do in one fight, but it doesn't mean we're completely useless."_

Ark gave him a look. _" Since when was the cowardly Smoker talking like a hardened veteran?"_

Sion returned the look with a grin. " _Since the time the deadly Hunter started yipping like a beat dog."_

Ark looked at him, surprised, but he quickly grinned. Sion was right... one little fight where he felt useless, and he was whining like a beaten dog. Maybe he was the one being a coward right now. " _Yip yip then."_

Sion laughed and thumped him on the shoulder. " Now don't start scratching your ears or something." he said with a grin. " Where's Zephyr and Zane?" he asked once he was done laughing.

Ark gestured towards their makeshift camp. " Sleeping. Need Rest. Zephyr on last watch."

Sion licked his lips. " I see..." he fiddled with his guns. " Do you really think that forest encampment's gonna be any good?" he asked after a moment. " I mean... the last one was fine until I sorta blew our cover and you had to rescue me."

Ark sighed, picking at his nails again. In all honesty, the forest encampment seemed like another stop to him, and it didn't feel like it would be a place to call home. Opening his eyes, he stared up at the sky. "_ I think... I want to head south sometime. If the encampment's a bust, that is."_

" _Why south?" _Sion asked, turning his eyes to watch the survivors settling in. " _Why not any other direction?"_

Ark exhaled slowly, watching his breath in the night air. " _South seems to be calling me the most. It's like, I feel something good is down there. But... I don't want to really leave them... they're all I've known." _He turned his eyes back to the survivors, picking lightly at the jacket he wore. Since the raid, he was still wearing the clothes from the soldier, and while it was warm, there was no hood to pull over his ears.

Sion stretched his legs out. " _Like a little bird leaving the nest...Ark, if you want to go so badly, why don't you just go? Zoey and the others will be fine with or without us infected..."_

Ark turned to look at him. " _I'll think about it. I mean, I feel like I should go, but I'm not going to just rush in. This is a reminder of what happened the last time I rushed anything." _he gestured to his injuries, which were healing nicely, but still visible.

Sion nodded and got up, brushing himself off. " Well, think on it, I guess. I'm gonna hit the sack before it's my turn to watch."

* * *

Chad aimed down the sight, groaning as he mentally pulled the trigger in his mind, missing completely. " My aim's junk... don't know why I volunteered to keep watch." He took aim again and played the scenario in his mind again, barely hitting the target as Sion aimlessly flicked the rubberband at a fence post.

" Better than me right now." Sion said bluntly, flicking the rubberband again. " I couldn't pull off a headshot on a Hunter unless it's body was sealed up in concrete to the neck."

Chad laughed at the visual before looking back out at the scenery, not having much to say. He made a soft noise of surprise when Sion gently nudged him with his foot, turning to look back at the Smoker sitting on the fence behind him. " What?"

" Why did you save me?" Sion asked, looking down at the combat medic.

Chad scratched his head absentmindedly. " Sorry... what?"

Sion's eyes narrowed at him, his irises glowing faintly. " Why did you save me from the lab? You could have left me."

Chad looked away. " Do I have to answer that?" a sharp kick to his back made him hiss and rub at the afflicted spot. " Ow! Okay, Okay, Okay, I helped rescue you because you're a friend and I owed you, now stop kicking me!"

Sion drew his foot back. " You don't owe me anything..." he said softly, Chad whirling around and giving the Smoker a glare. " I do too owe you." he said sharply. " You saved me from the Tank." Sion opened his mouth, about to protest, Chad leaping to his feet and jabbing him sharply in the chest with one finger, directly hitting the dogtags that had been secured around his neck again. " Listen. If it's about my brother, let it go. You're dragging his memory around like a crutch. Yes, I'm upset. Yes, I'm in mourning. But I am NOT letting it slow me down. Don't let it slow you down and keep you from acting like yourself."

Sion stared at him, unable to say anything, his mouth opening and closing with unspoken words. He thought about it for a moment, closing his eyes. " You're forgiving me?" he asked quietly, his voice barely audible.

Chad turned back to keeping watch. " I've long since forgiven you. My family's not known for staying mad long." he sat down on the ground, cleaning his weapon. " But have you forgiven yourself? Or are you determined to blame yourself until you die?"

Sion crossed his legs and tilted back, looking up at the sky. " ... I don't know."

* * *

Zephyr wore a sympathetic look as she helped to change the bandages on Zoey's leg, pausing everytime she felt the other woman's leg twitch. " I'm sorry, Zoey. I'm being as gentle as I can..." she said softly, Zoey pushing her bangs off of her face and giving an approving nod.

" It's okay, Zeph. I'm just moving all over the place because it stings like a bitch." Zoey said, smiling at the Witch. " It's got nothing to do with your claws or whatnot. Besides, you're the only other girl here, and I can't exactly get the guys to help me with this. I don't want to bother Chad right now, he's taking watch."

Zephyr nodded and dressed the wound slowly, taking extreme care with her claws. " One hell of a graze that man gave you." she commented. " What on earth drove him to shoot at a fellow survivor?"

Zoey snorted, remember the less than friendly conversation from earlier. " He was looking for something, and was mad that I wasn't helping him in finding it. " she laughed darkly. " He wanted to take Ark with him for that reason."

Zephyr made a curious noise. " Huh... what use would Ark be of to him? I mean, he is strong, compared to other Hunters, but he's not exactly the sharpest tool in the shed if you know what I mean. Got a good heart, but not a fast brain."

Zoey chuckled softly. " He can think when the situation calls for it. It's just when we're not being plagued by zombies does he tend not to think."

Zephyr picked up the bandages again, grunting in slight irritation. " Zane, come over here and help me, I can't do this by myself." At her voice, the child screamer came dashing over to her to help, lost in his own little world as he wrapped the bandage, Zoey watching him before turning back to Zephyr.

" I know Ark and Sion don't remember being human at all, but what about you?" she asked, Zephyr slowly putting the medical supplies away.

" I was in my second year of college, aiming for a degree in Art." Zephyr said with a smile. " I loved to draw, sing, take pictures, all of the things connected with the arts. I was on a field trip when the infection hit, and I was heading for Mercy hospital as well. Obviously, I didn't make it. But, I guess I bear no ill will, and I'm simply living for the day, taking care of Zane."

Zoey watched Zane scamper into a sleeping bag, snuggling against it and falling asleep. " He's been quiet lately. Usually, he talks nonstop about something fun, or is constantly listening for infected. Something wrong with him?"

Zephyr sat back. " He was talking with the odd man who appeared when we were taking shelter at the bunker, and hasn't really said much since. Perhaps there's something on his mind. I probably should talk to him after I'm done with tending to everyone."

Zoey smiled as Zephyr finished up, sitting back and resting, not moving too much. " Well, we have been getting a lot of odd guests, but the first one wasn't so bad. The second one..."

Zephyr nodded in agreement, even though she hadn't seen the encounter. " The first one seemed troubled to me. Like he was a wandering soul, unable to find something or someone." she said softly. " He did say he was looking for family, but he wasn't frantic about finding them, almost as if they were already gone, and he was just searching for memories."

Zoey sighed. " That sucks, really. I hope his family's out there. I know mine isn't around anymore, but it doesn't mean that I can't wish someone else good luck with finding theirs."

Zephyr patted Zoey on the shoulder. " I hope he finds his family too. You should get some rest, because tomorrow's going to be hectic."

Zoey settled into her sleeping bag, chuckling. " Okay, mom."

* * *

" Wake the hell up, Louis." Francis grumbled, kicking the man's sleeping bag. " Damned if I'm gonna take your watch again."

Louis grumbled and rolled over, covering his head. " G'way. M'sleepin."

Francis gave him another sharp kick, the darker-skinned man waking with a sharp curse, the two men bickering for a full minute before Louis settled in for his turn on watch, Ark prowling around the area, claws at the ready. The whole watch was relatively quiet, save for a few common's stumbling onto the campground for a late supper, being served a lead martini, followed by a nice meal of hunter claws if they were a bit peckish. Ark and Louis did a fine job of protecting the area together, even if the conversation was minimal. There just wasn't much to say to lighten the mood.

Once the watch had passed, the others got ready to leave again, Zephyr supporting Zoey whenever she got tired. " How far away do you think the forest camp is?" Zoey asked, lifting her leg a bit higher so it wouldn't drag. " I mean, we've already walked pretty far from the old camp."

Chad looked back at her. " It's not much further, probably a day's walk or so."

Zoey grimaced. " So we're camping another night?"

Francis narrowed his eyes, but before he could say anything, Chad cut him off. " I hate camping..."

" Hey, that was my line!"

* * *

End Chapter 22

Yeah, I know it was a bit here and there, but I wanted to have the characters take the time to talk things through without having to spend a whole chapter for each talk. I'm not trying to make this go 100 chapters. Anyways, things should get moving by the next chapter, and if I can ever get across to left 4 dead 2, things will REALLY pick up. I love all of them fools.

Ciao~


	23. Blind

Chapter 23: Blind

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead

* * *

Zoey yawned as she tried to keep Bill's fast pace, not wanting to fall behind. After their little mishap, the group was sticking together like glue, and making good time through the forest. At the rate they were going, it seemed as if they wouldn't be camping outside again, but in a encampment. But she wasn't going to get her hopes up, every time she did, something happened.

Ark seemed as oblivious as ever, sniffing the air for any signs of danger as they walked. She was certain his mind was on food at the moment, judging by how long it took for him to reply on the scents in the area. It had gotten to the point where Bill was going by instinct and old training, forging his way on and off the trail Chad had pointed out. Francis and Louis were in a bad mood, mainly with each other thanks to Francis's negativity about the forest encampment. By the way the biker was speaking, it seemed as if there would be nothing to find except for remains.

Chad was keeping quiet, apparently going for some measure of stealth as he walked along, Zephyr behind him with Zane in her arms. Zoey didn't have the heart to tell Chad that stealth wasn't going to work on anything besides a Witch, but whatever floats his boat for the moment. Far too many flicks ended with someone trying to be stealthy and having something give the person away. Shifting her weight onto her uninjured leg again, she walked forward, looking around. Aside from the infected, the forest was actually a nice place. Not that she was the type to go nature hiking, she seriously doubted any of them were the type, but it was still a very peaceful and quiet place. The trees were healthy and vibrant despite the obvious sickness of the world around them, and the cool water flowing down the stream was calming.

Francis on the other hand, was seeing the worst in everything. " I tell you, if they start learning how to swim, we're doomed. Do we gotta cross this river?"

Chad nodded, switching his bag to the other shoulder. " Yeah, but there should be some rocks we can hop across."

Louis looked at the water, tilting his head as Bill wandered back to the treeline, getting a big stick. " Can't we just wade across? I mean, obviously, we'll get wet, but it's not that bad, right?" the darker skinned man asked, Bill placing the stick in the water and pulling it back out after a minute. The stick, which came up to Bill's hip, was almost completely soaked, and the veteran had to tug on the stick to keep the current from snatching it from him. " Deeper than it looks and faster than you think."

Louis paled at the sight, looking back at the river. "Mother nature threw us another curve ball... next we'll be heading south or something."

" I hate the south... too damn warm." Francis interjected, Sion looking at him.

" Have you even ever BEEN south, Francis?" Sion asked, one eyebrow raised.

Francis gave the Smoker a knowing expression. " Have you?" he replied, grinning triumphantly when Sion made a face at him. " I thought so."

Zoey cast a glance back at all of them. " Will you guys relax? We've got enough problems on the road as it is!"

Ark lifted his head. " Are we there yet?"

Chad looked at him. " No, and don't ask that again." he glanced further down the river, searching for the rock path. " There we go..." he gestured to a few large rocks that had been strewn across the flowing water, easing himself onto one.

Bill watched the medic ease himself across. " Alright, we take this one at a time. Stay on guard everyone, who knows what'll happen." Once Chad was across, Louis was next, the man taking his sweet time on the rocks, determined to not slip. Zoey was practically waiting for a long tongue to shoot from the trees and try to drag one of them in the water, her eyes following any movement in the trees.

Francis was next, the biker obviously uneasy about having to move across a river with only a few rocks to keep him from plunging into the fast, icy water. " I hate this..." he muttered under his breath, stretching only slightly to reach another rock, Ark gracefully leaping over him to the other side with no problem. " Sweatshirt wearing little bastard..."

Zoey had to stifle her laughter, instead turning her attention to watch as Sion grabbed a thick branch on the other side of the river with his tongue, leaping and pulling himself across with the momentum from the leap as well as the pull of his tongue. Francis's curses only got louder, and he turned his head to shoot a glare at Zephyr and Zane, daring them to use their talents to ford the river while the humans had to struggle across.

Zephyr offered the angry man a smile, letting Zane slump in her hands. She had no intentions of trying to leap the river, much less try to ford it. She simply waited her turn and watched the biker give Ark scathing looks once he was finally across, Zoey going next.

" Okay, gotta do this quickly..." Zoey told herself. In the movies, whenever the pretty girl's crossing a walkway aside from nearly slipping, they would get snagged or something, her unease growing by the minute. She didn't want to jinx them, but the way they were all crawling across one at a time was pretty much begging for something to happen. Smoker tongue, Hunter pounce, hell even another Tank.

Bill refused to go next, forcing Zephyr and Zane to cross before him. The Witch and Screamer got across without much difficulty, the veteran easing himself across finally. Once everyone was across, everyone was relieved. " One hurdle down," Louis said cheerfully, Francis cutting him off. " And a million to go, keep walking."

Zoey sighed and picked up her gun again, bringing it tightly to her chest. The feeling of unease that she had was taking its sweet time with going away, and she wanted to get to a safe place, even if it was just a train car or something, as soon as possible. A chance to rest arrived when they reached a checkpoint of all things, several armed men looking them over.

Zephyr had dashed into the woods to get out of sight, her long claws too difficult to hide. Zane had offered to go with her, but the Witch told him to stay with the others, leaving the little Screamer in Zoey's arms. Zoey felt bad for Zephyr, but they all knew that Zephyr's presence was too hard to hide, especially with her outward appearance. They could argue until sundown and sunup, but no soldier was going to change his mind that Zephyr was dangerous. They would shoot without hesitation, and Zephyr simply got the drop on them by getting out of sight.

Regular routine was taken with Ark and Sion, removal of hood, application of gloves, and calming of the nerves before they approached the men, Bill shoving Chad forward to deal with the men, trying his best to just ignore the desire to shoot them for the looks they were giving Zoey. It was the same as when he was in the barracks at war, men reduced to canines, eagerly wagging their tales and giving chase to the first thing with breasts, even if it was the ugliest thing on earth. Some men were desperate for female company in times of war, and this fight against the infected was no different.

Zoey kept her gun in plain sight as the men checked them over determining that they didn't look sick. " There's an encampment further up the trail. Head there for safety and medical treatment." one of the soldiers instructed. Louis was seriously tempted to add "Have a nice day." at the end of their statements, simply based on the fact that the men looked like they would have little trouble eliminating him. Francis however, wasn't so restrained, freely stating " I hate the goddamn army," as well as " who put you pussy-foots on guard duty?"

Chad was keeping his distance from the soldiers, along with Ark, Sion, and Zane, all four of them keeping low profiles as the men inspected their guns, giving it back to them. When they finally received the permission to move along, and once they were out of sight, the insults flew.

" I can't believe the nerve of those guys!" Zoey said. " For all they cared, I was a pair of breasts that talked!"

" Colorful metaphor, Zoey." Louis said, trying to keep the mental image from flowing into his mind. Francis was less than restrained again, a blush creeping onto his face. Ark didn't quite get the image he did, but he too, was blushing, Sion laughing softly.

" Got something on your mind?" he teased, Ark batting at him. " Go away!"

Zane looked up at Louis, who's hand he was clinging to. " Why did it suddenly get quiet?" he asked, Louis looking down at him. " Tends to happen when someone says something that makes you think." he said quickly.

Zane thought for a moment then looked up at Louis again. " It gets quiet when someone makes a sex joke or asks about having sex, right?"

Louis tried to hide the look on his face. " Who told you that?"

Francis started gesturing, imitating a zipper over his mouth as Zane replied, " Francis did." making Zoey and Louis look at Francis. " Zane, don't repeat everything you hear him tell you, k?" Zoey said, sighing. Zane nodded as Francis moved a bit closer to the group, not wanting Zephyr to come flying out of the woods at him. He didn't know how motherly the Witch was over the tiny screamer, and wasn't willing to test out the theory by saying anything more. Sion and Chad both chuckled, Ark sniffing the air.

" I smell... food!" Ark perked up, cheerfully bouncing in one place. Bill watched the Hunter bounce in one place. " Settle down, kid, before you break something. It's not going anywhere." he turned to look at the others. " Must be the camp, if we're lucky."

Zoey nodded, watching Ark dart ahead. " If we're lucky."

* * *

Luck was on their side, it was a well built camp, with fortified walls along with river protection. Someone probably took some info on watching Shooters fight, because several wood boards were sharpened into spines and placed along the ground near the walls, a few infected bodies pierced on them from trying to leap at the wall. Barbed wire was also strung around the area as well, but with plenty of escape routes, if one looked hard enough.

Louis whistled at the sight. " Wow, these guys are good. Look at all the stuff they got just to keep the infected away from the WALL! They've gotta have heavier weaponry in there, in case of a Tank or something. Maybe another minigun, Francis."

Francis sniffed. " Still ain't gonna replace my girl... shame I had to leave her. She was beautiful."

Bill looked at him. " And how would you have carried such a thing around, you idiot? It takes several men to set those things up sometimes. Better to have just let it go." he stopped talking to look around the area. " Now... how do we approach this without getting a bullet scar for our troubles?" he said.

Louis gestured at the frontal gate. " There looks like a good as place as any to start..." he began walking in that direction, a bullet piercing where his foot would have been if Bill hadn't pulled him back.

"Never go walking at any encampment gate without your hands up and weapons slack. " Bill instructed him. " Jumping the gun will get you hurt, or worse." he took a puff on his cigarette. " The trees closest to the fort has a sniper team on standby in there. They'll shoot if we get any closer without identifying ourselves. What happened just now was a warning shot."

Zoey looked over at the trees and couldn't see anything. " Are you sure there's a team in there?" she asked, Francis snorting as if he was about to challenge the veteran on his knowledge. Bill gestured to the bullet mark in front of them. " See the angle? Didn't come from the camp itself." he held his hands up, the gun slack in one hand. " Follow me and keep quiet you three. " he said to Ark, Sion, and Zane. " Don't say anything and we might be able to pull this off with as few questions as possible."

Everyone followed Bill's example and walked towards the gate, a covered person greeting them. " Sorry for shooting at you, but had to make sure you weren't being chased or nothing, or sick." he said apologetically. " Have you encountered anyone on your way here?"

Bill looked up at him. " A few people, but not many. Why? Someone go missing from your camp?" he asked. Common courtesy, not to mention talking to someone new was nice for a change.

The soldier shook his head. " No... we've had a rogue survivor attacking others and stealing a few items from them, not to mention asking for the whereabouts of a large hunter. We've had a few casualties thanks to this guy, and we're trying to stop him. He's worse than the damned infected."

Zoey rubbed at her injured leg. " We've met." she said acidly. Thinking about their previous encounter, she looked up at the soldier. " Did a southern man with really long hair stop by? Looks like the dead but still talks fine?" she asked.

" No, we haven't seen anyone matching that description... but there's two other gates. Maybe you could ask them once we clear you to enter." the soldier replied. " How many are there, and is anyone sick or horribly injured?"

Bill took a minute to count everyone. " There's eight of us, seven adults and one child." he reported. " One of us was grazed on the leg by a bullet, but she can walk."

The soldier told them to wait while he got clearance, Ark looking at Sion, tilting his head. He was nervous, and his hands wouldn't stop twitching from the feeling. Sion shook his head, gently murmuring to him. " Easy, Ark... I blew it at the last camp, don't blow it here, k?" he said softly.

Ark nodded, and tightened his jacket that he had stolen from the other camp. He wished he had his hoodie back, that way he could pull it up and hide his nervousness, but that would just make things worse. Chad had mentioned having retrieved his hoodie in all the confusion, but now was not the time to start asking for it back. After what seemed like incredibly tense moments, they were allowed to enter the camp, undergoing the same procedure as before. Again, they all registered their names, and after Zoey's leg was treated, allowed into the main camp.

" That seemed highly anticlimactic, compared to what we just went through..." Louis said, rubbing his head. Chad looked at him. " Don't jinx it... and we all should stay close for now... who knows what's going to happen for a while."

Zoey sighed. " It sucks that Zephyr couldn't come... but it would have been too hard to hide her claws from everyone." She felt bad that they had to leave the Witch outside, but Zephyr hadn't seemed to have many problems with that, so she let it go. " I don't think things will be nearly as easy as last time when it comes to finding a place to sleep tonight, so let's ask around and see if anyone will put some of us up for the night."

Chad nodded as a small girl bumped into him, the girl squeaking and falling to the ground. " Oh! I'm sorry..." he said, reaching a hand out to help her. The girl fumbled around and got up without ever touching Chad's hand, her bag left laying on the ground, full of various items including snacks. " Where's my bag!" she squeaked again, searching around for it with her hands, the rest of the group watching her fumble.

" She's blind..." Zoey said, the girl not even bothering to brush long curly blond locks from in front of her eyes, instead searching by touch. Zane picked up her bag. " Here, miss..." he said, placing it near her hands, the girl gently cupping Zane's hands in her own. " Oh, thank you, little one..." she said, her milky blue eyes warm and gentle despite being unable to see.

" How did she live through all this?" Francis said out loud, Louis hushing him. " No, I mean, we had to fight our way out of the city, how would she have done so without a gun or her eyes?"

The girl fiddled with a lock of her hair. " I was one of the lucky ones to be evacuated early... I wouldn't have made it out alive if it hadn't been for that." she said softly, her voice soft and pleasant. "My name is Solaris, what's yours?" she asked.

Zoey decided to handle this, stepping up to Solaris. " I'm Zoey." she said, firmly gripping Solaris's hand and shaking it slowly. " Behind me is Bill, Louis, Francis, Ark, Sion, and Chad. The little one who gave you your bag is Zane." she said, smiling. Solaris nodded before holding up her hands. " May I?" she asked softly, Zoey having little idea what she was going to do. " Uh, sure?"

Solaris gently cupped Zoey's chin, moving up and exploring her face, trying to get a good picture of Zoey's facial features. Zoey was trying not to laugh the entire time, Solaris's hands like a little cushion moving across her face and arms like a massage. " You look and sound like a very nice person." Solaris said, once she got a good idea of what Zoey looked like.

Zoey gave the other girl a smile. " Thanks."

Solaris held out her hands. " Can I see the others?" she asked, Zoey taking her hand and leading her over to Bill. " Is it okay?" she asked, Bill taking out his cigarette. " Fine... but make it quick." he said, Solaris nodded and being quick about drawing a mental picture of him.

" You're the leader, aren't you?" she giggled softly. " You seem like a no-nonsense man." Bill nodded and she brought her hands down. " You're a respectable man, and you know what you're talking about, and sometimes need to vent stress on things." She smiled at him. " Nice to meet you."

Louis was amazed. " You're pretty good, do you figure that out by just touching our faces?"

Solaris turned towards his voice. " I can tell sometimes by how you speak, and the way you move around me. I can hear footsteps and breathing pretty clearly. When someone walks with a sharp, brisk pace, they are most likely either in a hurry, or a bad mood. Little things help me to get ideas of the people around me."

Louis was practically leaping at the opportunity for Solaris to evaluate him, but Bill held out his hand for him to calm down a bit. " How does this camp work in terms of settlement? We're a fairly large group, and there may be some problems with separating some of us."

Solaris slung her bag over her shoulder again and fastened the clasp on it. " On the first night, usually some of the others will put new people up for a bit, and then you're organized by arrival. For example, if there's eight of you, they would organize you in two groups."

Zoey sighed. " But finding someone to put us up for one night might be rough..." she said, looking over at Francis, who's presence was making a few of the people in the camp nervous. " Sol, do you think you could put at least one or two of us up?"

Solaris thought about it. " I could maybe take three people tops. It's me, my mother, and my boyfriend, but we have an extra bed and a couch. Someone will have to settle for the floor though."

Zoey saw a small spark of hope. " Thanks, Sol. So, who do you think you can take?"

Solaris led them to her house, Louis acting as her lead. " Well, I'll let you guys decide. " she said, Louis looking up at the quaint little house. It was a actual furnished home, no doubt built long before the infection, with three bedrooms and a large living room. Several books were scattered about, but either than that, the house was devoid of personal items. The only real items in the room besides the books were the shelves they belonged on, and a couch with pillows and blankets in the living room.

" Not much here, huh?" Chad said, looking around. " But then again, you're sight impaired, and this is the infection we're talking about. Gotta be ready to move at a moment's notice." Solaris nodded, maneuvering around a table.

" It is just me and two other people, so no need to get fancy..." she said. " Anyways, the bedroom's this way. Maybe, if you guys are willing to share, two people could sleep in there."

Francis had the infamous Don't-count-on-it look on his face, Zoey elbowing him in the side as they followed her, Louis spotting a single violet eye staring at him and the others from behind a door. " Er... guys?" he said, looking at the door carefully. " What's behind that door?"

Solaris didn't bother lifting her head from searching around for pillows, feeling the floor. " Colt. My boyfriend." she said simply. " He protects me and my mother from harm."

Louis nodded approvingly. " That's guy's got a good heart."

Ark nodded as well before hearing a soft click, looking back at the door. " Huh...?"

" _Who are you?"_ Colt asked.

Ark's jaw fell to the ground in disbelief. " Wha..." he started, not finding in him to form a coherent sentence.

" _My name is Colt... If you try to hurt her, Hunter, I will kill you and the others. This is my domain... and you're all victims if you try anything."_

* * *

End Chapter 23

Solaris's behavior is based off a blind person I once knew... touched my face and psychoanalyzed me on the spot. That woman was damn good too, I apparently had way too serious an expression for a child my age at the time. She told me to go have more fun to prevent wrinkles. Not to mention she moved around better than some of us with sight. I felt embarrassed, tripping over a stool and she just moved around it like it was there to begin with.

Anyways, I had a lot of fun writing the water crossing scene, having done it myself a few times. Just because it looks calm, doesn't mean it is, and good hikers should know when to avoid crossing. Watch for signs, and for your own sake, watch the weather report leading up to a hike or so. It can make all the difference in the area around the river, like mud. ( Okay, now I sound like an episode of rescue heroes...)

Anyways, I'm wrapping up the tale with the first group of survivors... and we're heading south! *crickets* Joking aside, once we get to l4d2, I hope to be able to release chapters much more quickly.

Ciao for now, don't kill me with fire!


	24. South

Chapter 24: South

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead or the song lyrics mentioned here.

No killing with flames, k?

* * *

Ark swallowed nervously, Sion looking at him in confusion. They walked into one hell of a situation, and he and Sion were probably the only one who could do anything about it. Colt was possibly a very dangerous infected, and they didn't want to anger him in anyway. Sion was on edge as well, inching back. It fell to them to protect the others, but they didn't even know what they were up against. Chad and the other humans were oblivious, all listening to Solaris as she toured them through her home, avoiding the room where Colt was.

" _What do we do_?" Sion said softly to Ark, looking over at him as they followed Solaris. " _Who knew her boyfriend was an infected? How did he get into the camp anyways?"_

" _The same way we did." _Ark replied. "_If you look human enough, they'll let you through in a place like this. I doubt anyone's done any medical checks around here."_

Sion bit his lip nervously. " _Crap... Zoey and the others are following Solaris around, and if we start a fight it'll mean nothing but trouble for both sides. I vote we just watch our moves until we can get situated better. Who knows how fast Colt can react if something happens."_

Ark looked back at the pair of eyes peering at him through the door. " _I'd say too fast."_

" Is someone sick? I hear a lot of growling and coughing. I have some medicine..." Solaris said, Sion snapping back to attention, Ark looking up at her as well. He had so become accustomed to Zoey and the others just passing his and Sion's infected speech off as useless chatter, he had forgotten that the outside world could hear it.

" I have a nasty allergy to some things." Sion quickly lied. " Gets me coughing and wheezing really fast. Either than that I'm fine."

Solaris nodded. " I have some cough medicine in the cupboard with the bent dull hook. It's so I can find things easier." she said, making her way into the kitchen.

" I'm impressed that you move so well, Solaris." Zoey said, following her. " Excuse me for asking, but is it really hard to navigate when you're blind?"

Solaris paused at the door, Zoey instantly retracting her statement to begin apologizing when Solaris nodded softly. " I'm totally blind, but from injury, not birth." she said finally. " I was in an accident when I was younger, so I still remember colors and the outside world. In a way, it's more painful than having been born blind. I know the colors of the item I'm holding, but the world is black to me now." she was starting to cry.

Zoey felt bad for even asking, coming over to Solaris, an angry sounding noise coming from the closed door. "_Shit...he's getting mad..." _Sion said, looking at the door. Ark looked back at the door, his eyes narrowing. " _Stop being a dog barking from behind a fence. Come out here."_

Ark's courage took a nose dive when Colt came out of the room. He was just as big as Sion, but younger, with the defined build of an athlete. His heterochromic eyes burned, the violet and red gaze boring into Ark's skull hard enough to give him a headache just looking at him. His hair was black in color, but had violet streaks in them, an obvious punk style with the addition of the spiked up look. But the most impressive thing was his left arm.

From the elbow down, it was covered in spines. The long, lengthy spines of the Shooter could be seen easily, and they looked just as deadly as the rest of the infected versions they'd seen before. Ark trembled from the memories of the Shooters they had encountered before, his eyes wide with fear and the desire to flee. Special infected in the wild were one thing. Some of them did possess the ability to be clever, and few managed to lay traps for them, but what set the rare types above them was their ability to do complex thinking. Sion's ability to use a gun for example, along with Ark's instincts about opponents and situations.

Ark sized Colt up in that instant, trying to decide on a course of action. Colt didn't really possess a fully human appearance, so blending in was next to impossible, but his ability to fight was probably far more advanced than anything Ark or Sion had, being a Shooter. The best thing to do would be to avoid any and all confrontations until they had a better idea of what they were up against. He still felt the fear of going up against a tough opponent, but it wasn't nearly as crushing as the visitor they had once before. That time, it had been a cold, hard feeling that no matter what he did, it would be futile. With Colt, he felt like he had a small chance.

Zoey and the others were astounded though, seeing Colt's appearance. As veteran survivors of the infection, they were all instantly on guard. Colt was a threat to their survival, and if it came down to it, each of them would fight for their lives. The tension in the air was becoming dangerous until Solaris made her way over to Colt, gently taking his human hand. " Colt, are you hungry? I'm sorry I didn't make anything for you to eat, mom used the leftover snacks for breakfast, so I went to get more from our supplies." she said, smiling at him.

Colt was instantly in a better mood, soft sounds escaping him as his hand tightened around hers, Solaris practically beaming. " See? This is Colt." she said proudly. " He lives with me and mom, and is a big help in the house when my mom's gone."

" Yeah... a big help..." Zoey said, clearly trying to avoid mentioning the spines. She had already made Solaris cry, the last thing she needed was to make Solaris mad. Louis and Bill were also watching their words, and Francis seemed to be contemplating what to say, it was written all over their faces. Chad however, was marveling at the sight of Colt, his mind already breaking Colt's appearance down into basic facts and speculations. Zane was sniffling slightly, still missing Zephyr, tears in his eyes.

" I don't want to be the bearer of crappy news, but your boyfriend's a walking pincushion." Francis said bluntly, the others all giving an exasperated sigh. " Couldn't you have said that any nicer?" Louis said. " Oh, wait, it's Francis we're talking about here."

Solaris blinked softly, looking at where his voice came from. " You mean a Shooter, right? I already knew." She gently stroked Colt's hand. " Me and my mom both knew, when we found him."

Zoey's eyes widened. " You took him in?" she asked, feeling the same way she did when she decided to make Ark part of their group. " Even though it's obvious he's infected?"

Solaris lifted her head, steeling herself. " Mr. Ark, Mr. Sion, little Zane, they're all infected too, aren't they?" she said, the group unable to stop their surprised gasp. " I'm blind, but not that blind. Ark growls too loudly to be just upset, and Sion has a smoky smell about him. Not a cigarette smell, but more like the smell of a forest fire. Zane's voice pitch changes frequently, so I can't tell what he's feeling, but at the same time, he's not trying to be too loud. They all walk with cautious strides, ready to flee or fight at a moment's notice, and they don't speak to me naturally, like they're afraid I'll find out if they choose their words wrong."

" She's good..." was the only thing Louis had to say on the subject, Chad nodding. " It has been said that people who lose their sight also gain many other ways of perceiving the world around them... I guess without sight, it's easier for her to tell what is a lie, and what is the truth."

Solaris smiled. " I'm not that good. All I can really do is figure out how people look like by touching them, and listen to their voices to figure out emotions. I'd give all that up in a heartbeat if I could see again." she led Colt to the kitchen, starting to rummage around the items in her bag. " Colt, what am I holding?" she asked, holding up a bag of noodles.

"Noodles." Colt replied, his actual voice very gentle despite his appearance. Solaris nodded and started to search around for a pot. " Let me know when it's boiling, okay?" she said, Colt nodding and taking vigilance in the kitchen. The tension forgotten, the survivors simply stared at the scene before them. Colt had become completely docile, following Solaris around like a lost puppy. Zoey was reminded of the first nights with Ark, how he was attached to her and only her. " It's so similar..." she said, smiling.

Solaris nearly poured oil on herself. " What's similar?" she said, righting herself.

Zoey left the others to fight over bedding arrangements and took the time to have some one on one girl chat. " I adopted Ark from Mercy City, he saved me and the others several times before getting torn up by a Witch. We brought him in, and he's been with us ever since. Kinda like you and Colt."

Solaris set the pot to boil, Colt watching over it, sitting down to talk with Zoey. " Do you... do you love Ark?" she asked.

Zoey nearly choked.

"NO!" she practically yelled, several people jumping. Realizing what happened, she quieted down. " No. I rescued him... and he is sweet and all, but I don't even think I'm his type. I like him, but more as a friend than a lover. Plus, whoever wants to chase him had better be a goddess at making hamburgers."

" Burger?" Ark asked, poking his head into the room.

Zoey laughed. " See what I mean? Speak of the devil, and he shall come. Go on, Ark, go back, Solaris an I were just talking." she said, Ark nodding and going back to the others. " I wish Zephyr could have met you... she's a Witch, which is why we had to leave her outside of the camp. Maybe we'll find a way to sneak her in or something."

Solaris nodded. " You're all sweet. I mean, I know that every human-like infected isn't nice, but at least the ones you and I have encountered are sweet. Speaking of which, are you going to head south?" she asked.

Zoey blinked, taken off guard by the question. " South? No, it never crossed my mind. I don't think the group's thought of it either."

Solaris looked at Zoey. " Colt and the other Shooters are from the south. He told me that they're very reclusive, usually claiming a territory and hunting in that exact area, which is why we don't see them much. He told me, that someday, me and my mother will have to go south, and when that day comes, he'll protect us. "

Zoey scratched at her head. " Why south of all things? Why not north?"

Solaris spilled some water onto the table, making a face. " Clumsy... Shooters can't stand the cold. If you bump into one, find a way to make it cold, and you'll have a chance to escape. Anyways... I heard that they're still evacuating down south. We might be heading that way sometime soon."

Zoey nodded. " I hope things go well for you and Colt... but I don't think we're going south. It took a lot to get here... I don't think the others are up for continuing on what could be a wild goose chase."

Solaris looked at her. " If you go south... avoid any bridges. I think that in order to halt the spread of infection, they shut some of the bridges down, so you'll be walking into a deathtrap if you decide to use a bridge."

Zoey gently patted Solaris's hand. " Thanks for looking out for all of us, Solaris. You just stay with Colt, and you'll be safe. We can handle ourselves from here."

* * *

Ark roamed around outside, listening to the sounds all around him, lulled by a sense of familiarity. Some of it seemed soothing, while the rest just made him uncomfortable, the Hunter walking past a small group of people listening to a radio, leaning against the wall to listen to the children singing.

_He shook his head, and he said with a smile " what I'd really like is to borrow the car keys, see you later dad can I have them please?"..._

Ark stopped as he heard the faint jingle of car keys and a small fuzzy memory floated into his mind, staring at his hand, closing it like he had an object in them. In his mind, he saw the fuzzy shape of a key... followed by a smiling face, one full of pride and sadness. Was he leaving this face behind for something? He just couldn't remember, but his mouth had made up it's mind.

" And the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon, little boy blue and the man on the moon... When you coming home son? I don't know when, but we'll be together then, dad... we'll be together then..." he sang softly, despite having not remembered the song on the radio.

Dad... why did that leave him feeling nostalgic for somewhere he couldn't remember?

He sat mulling about it before getting up, turning his head to look at the south. That was where he needed to go... answers were there. But it also meant saying goodbye to everyone, he doubted that anyone would go with him.

" Southward bound, eh? Sounds like fun." Sion said, slumping next to him. Ark yelped and nearly jumped onto the roof, giving him a glare. " I'm coming too." the smoker said simply, fingering a gloved hand. " If I leave you to your own devices, the south will be a horrid mess, not to mention a massive burger shortage."

" What about Zane? Zephyr? Chad?" Ark asked, looking back at him.

Sion held up some fingers. " Zane will be fine, he's a kid that can make anyone get attached to him. Zephyr's always nearby, and I think she might follow us. As for Chad, his skills are needed here."

Ark looked at the setting sun. " Let's... let's leave without saying goodbye. It's hard. Don't want to."

Sion shrugged. " That's your choice... I'll see about getting us a vehicle or something." he said, walking off.

Ark watched him leave before settling against the wall, sliding out of his jacket and folding it up neatly, bringing it into Solaris's house. Colt was watching him warily from the room, but he simply offered a passing wave to the Shooter and found the couch, noticing Zoey sleeping on it. A soft smile crept on his face as he laid the jacket down on top of her and gently kissed her cheek, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

" Thanks for everything... but I gotta go now." he whispered. " Good luck... and survive."

Silently, he turned and left the room, with a new destination in mind.

He was heading south.

* * *

End Chapter 24

Our little boy's grown up, hasn't he? Next up... south, and some new survivors, including one volatile conman... don't think the others are gone just yet, after all, the story's not marked as complete, now is it?

I didn't feel like dedicating a whole chapter to saying goodbye, after all with the cameos from another story and the decision to head south. I figured Ark wasn't the type for long goodbye's either, though Zoey might pound him for that kiss if she catches up with him.

Anyways, I look forward to writing south, and making it even more humorous with the arrival of Ellis... ANYTHING can be a keith story with that boy...

Ciao for now, and let's go south!


	25. Motel

Chapter 25: Hotel

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead 2

* * *

Ark sang softly to himself as Sion drove, ignoring the pointed looks he was receiving from the Smoker. He wondered how the survivors were doing after they left so suddenly without so much as leaving a note. He also wondered if they were mad, yelping as Sion hit a rough patch. _" Oi! Watch the road!"_

Sion struggled with the wheel. _" I am being careful! But this road is not exactly smooth sailing!"_ He blew a strand of hair out of his face, making a mental note to cut it later. In order to deal with the conditions of the south, he and Ark changed his outfits when they had stopped earlier, the Smoker now wearing a simple black t-shirt and the familiar army style jacket wrapped around his waist. He wore a simple pair of brown pants and black shoes as well. Ark had switched out his old clothing for a pair of form fitting blue jeans, a red belt loosely hanging around his waist, a form fitting navy blue v-neck shirt. He still wore his old shoes, but he made a mental note to get some new ones once they found a city.

Sion hit a rough patch again, growling as he nearly hit his head on the windshield from pitching forward. Ark was not so lucky, smacking his head against the windshield, an irritated groan coming from the backseat, Sion and Ark both whirling to look at the covered backseat. Chad groaned and sat up from the seat, rubbing his head. " Can't a guy get some decent sleep around here?" he said angrily.

" What are you doing HERE?" Sion shouted, Chad covering his ears.

" Not so loud..." he complained. " I knew you two were gonna pull something like this, so I waited in the only available vehicle." he yawned again and stretched out, sitting up. " So, where are we heading?"

Sion shook his head, sighing. " South..." he said. " Ark had some sort of desire to go, and I felt as if I just needed to go."

Chad shook his head. " Did you guys say goodbye?" he asked, Sion and Ark looking away. " Guess that answers that. You realize if we ever meet them again, we're gonna get seriously pounded, right?"

Ark nodded. " I know..." he whimpered, trying not to let the image of a demonic Zoey overtake his mind. He looked back out at the area, yelping again as Sion hit yet another rough patch. " _Are you AIMING for rough spots?"_

Sion shot him a look. " We're in the middle of the goddamn forest! Excuse me for trying NOT to hit every damn tree!"

Chad held up his hands. " Easy you two... it's not like we're in a lot of tro-ugh!" he grunted as Sion hit the brakes suddenly, hitting his head on the drivers seat. " The hell was that for?" he whined.

Sion gestured out towards the scenery. " There's a bridge up ahead... but something's telling me to not cross it."

Ark had the same feeling, instead fumbling with the dashboard. " Any way to get around it?" he asked, Chad reaching for a map. They folded it out on the hood and took a few moments to figure out where they were, Ark's navigational skills less than stellar. " There's another way, but it'll take days." Chad finally said. After a lengthy game of rock paper scissors, which Ark was also less than stellar at, the small group agreed to head out on the detour, using the car as far as it would take them.

* * *

As it turns out, the vehicle only had twenty more miles in it before it died in a spectacular fashion, sputtering and collapsing on the dusty trail, Chad tempted to light it on fire but was convinced otherwise. Setting out on foot, they detoured around the bridge with few encounters, reaching a highway, the trip having took several days. Ark missed the survivors more and more with each passing day, but kept his head held high.

" Now where are we?" Sion complained, resting against a car hood. " All I see is abandoned cars and more abandoned cars."

Ark shrugged, pawing at a container he found, trying to unscrew the lid. He could smell something awful from inside it, but his curiosity got the better of him, cracking open the lid. It smelled similar to a boomer... but not really. It still smelt bad... was it juice? Curiosity winning over all, he stuck his tongue into the jar to taste.

" #$%^&*&%$##$%^&* -#$%^&#$%^&*!"

Ark collapsed to the ground, screeching bloody murder as he tried to get the taste out of his mouth, unable to even describe the putrid taste in his mouth with words. It tasted like everything he had ever eaten before, rotting away. Even the twinkie from his early days didn't cause him this much agony, the Hunter baying painfully before trying to claw his tongue off.

Sion ran to stop him, Ark mewling pitifully before taking the jar and throwing it away as far as he possibly could, whimpering the entire time. Sion watched the jar sail away and the contents spill out, a small horde of commons all attacking where it landed, even though there was nothing there. He slowly pieced it together, a smirk tugging at his lips, Ark holding up a single finger.

" Not. A. Word." he threatened.

All Sion could do was laugh.

* * *

Further down the highway, they stumbled upon an abandoned racecar, Ark examining it with a surprised sound. " What is this?"

Chad looked it over, Sion still snickering from the earlier events. " Looks like a racecar... but what is doing here? And it's all horribly banged up too. But... it probably would have taken it's owner further down the road if it hadn't been for all these abandoned cars."

Sion scratched at his ear. " It's been what, nearly five days since we left the others?

Chad held up his fingers. " A week, actually." he said, Sion rolling his eyes. " But we've covered a lot of ground. We rarely stopped, so I think we're well in the south by now."

Ark sat on the hood of the car, his mind buzzing. So many things had happened since that night in the rain... but he felt content with everything, even if he still missed the survivors. Now... he was searching for the song and the memories connected with it. It felt like a lame excuse, but he truly wondered... who was he? What kind of person was he before?

" Hey, Sion?" he asked, leaning over to look at Sion, who was checking the area around the racecar. _" Do you ever wonder what you were like as a human? Before you got bit?"_

Sion shook his head. " Not once. I don't want to." he said flatly, finding some discarded ammunition.

Ark was taken by surprise with Sion's instant and emotionless reply. " _You're not in the least bit curious?_" he asked, amazed.

Sion tossed the discarded ammunition aside. _" What if the human I was before was scum of the earth? Would I be satisfied with knowing that? This body... maybe it was that of a murderer. Maybe a loving parent. Maybe a loner looking for love. I'll never know." his tone of voice suggested that the topic was no longer up for discussion._

Ark retreated from the conversation as Chad returned to them. " I saw more discarded ammunition along the trail... I'd say that the person or persons who used them had to abandon the car and head on foot down the freeway. What say we follow the leader?" he said, trying to change the mood.

Ark and Sion nodded and gathered their things, heading down the highway. Less than five minutes later, Sion stared up at the giant billboard. " Whispering Oaks fairgrounds ahead..." he said, looking back at them. Ark looked at Chad in confusion, not knowing what any of that meant.

" It's a carnival... with food, games, toys and rides for children. Probably long since abandoned. But we might find something there. " Chad said, lowering his head. " I wonder just how many children died while playing on their favorite rides when the infection hit." he said solemnly, his hair covering his face.

Ark placed his hand on Chad's shoulder. " Don't know... maybe kids helped before." he said, trying to cheer the human up. He had forgotten that Chad and Sion possessed the same disposition, with careful planning and clinical depression being their best traits. He would have to really work to keep them both in good spirits. He stared up at the billboard before continuing on, stepping onto the trunk of a nearby car. " ...oh my god..." he said, staring out at the scene before him.

Cars all littered the highway, some crashed and some parked where they were, the smell of death and decay evident in the area. Used to the scent, but not used to the magnitude, Ark crouched down and gagged loudly, unable to deal with the overpowering smell. His stomach threatened to empty itself of the snacks they had eaten for breakfast, Sion sitting beside him and rubbing his back gently. " We can find another way around if it bothers you that much." the Smoker said soothingly, trying to help.

Ark covered his nose slightly. " No... the trail goes through here, we have to go. Besides... if the others were here, they would tell me to suck it up and stop being a baby." he got to his feet and stumbled forward, passing the cars and trying not to look inside them.

Chad on the other hand, was pulling his head out of a vehicle, gagging from the smell as well. " Adult Caucasian female... most likely age 30. Has a small child by the looks of the toys in the back seat, but no body of the child. She suffered blunt trauma to the head, most likely died instantly from the car accident." he said, gesturing to the huge dent in the vehicle. "The child was either taken out of the car by a good Samaritan, or she was on her way to see the child when the infection hit. Body has been decomposing for over a week and a half, body would most likely only be identified by dental records now."

Sion whistled. " You're pretty good... did you get all of that from searching the car?"

Chad wiped his face gently, massaging his eyes. " No... when you take up a medical profession, sometimes you're asked to work graveyard shifts in the morgue. I was the unlucky guy who started in the morgue and worked up. I've seen more dead than living." he exhaled deeply. " We should keep moving... if I stop to do an autopsy on every body here, we'll be forty once it's done."

Sion and Ark both nodded, following the trail again until they found a tilted over truck. " Most likely the cause of the many accidents here." Chad said, trying to find a way around it. " That and the infected. "

" How do you know?" Ark asked, effortlessly leaping to the top of the truck. He gazed out at the area, spotting an off ramp and nearby searchlights.

" Because only half the bodies I looked at were bitten and clawed." Chad said, walking past Sion who was holding his gun with pale knuckles. " The other half died in their seats from impact or blood loss afterwards." he looked over at Sion, who was turning paler by the minute. " See something you don't like?" he asked.

Sion directed his eyes towards the ground. " Having good eyesight can be a big help, or a curse." he lifted his head and looked at the searchlights. " Lights... could mean some people. Or trouble."

Ark sighed. " Stop being so negative! We'll figure it out as we get there. The important thing is to get there!" He looked out at the scenery again. " Need to find lights. Lights far away." he pointed at the off ramp. " This is the way to go."

* * *

Chad and Sion didn't have any arguments, following behind Ark as they headed down the off-ramp. The small group was quiet for some time before Sion decided to try and start a conversation. " What do you think the chain of events are?" Sion asked, looking at Chad. " I mean, behind the infection."

Chad looked at him. " From a military or a civilian standpoint?" he asked, tilting his head. " Civilian; hear on news about deadly flu that is sweeping the nation and either heed the warnings to stay indoors away from infected or try to evacuate. Same as these people." he said, gesturing to the cars. " They were trying to reach a uninfected area and never made it."

He knelt beside a lit lantern and rifled through the ammunition that was piled up neatly on the ground, lifting the lantern to help him see. " Military; a highly contagious and potentially deadly virus has been leaked into the general community, is spreading fast. Must mobilize immediately to halt the spread and recover any survivors. Shoot anyone that appears infected, and quarantine anyone who's come into contact with infected until they can be tested for traces of the virus or until further notice."

Sion found more ammunition for his pistol. " You believe the military made this virus?" he asked, his brown eyes shining slightly from the lantern's light. Chad nodded. " No way in hell is this natural. I mean, a virus that starts in one place and is spread by various means, causing the people affected to become mindless beasts, driven only by lights and loud noises? Not natural in the slightest."

Ark sat and listened to him, most of the words flying over his head. " Then... is military helping, or harming?" he asked.

Chad snorted. " Come on, let's keep moving. And I say harming. Somebody doesn't want their little mistake escaping elsewhere, like another country, so for now, they're most likely halting any and all attempts to get out of America. Not to mention trying to save what little population is left, they're most likely also shooting people who could be, or are confirmed carriers."

" Come again? Carrier?" Sion asked, hearing some odd laughter in the distance. He whirled and looked around, but was unable to locate the source, becoming wary.

Chad groaned again. " When the human body comes into contact with any virus, one of three or four things happen. Take the infection for example, there are six cases. One, the person never come in contact with any infected. Two, person comes into contact with infection repeatedly, but no traces of it found in bloodstream, even after being bitten. The body has immunity against the virus, and would immediately filter it out of the blood once entered. Three, the person is bitten, and while the virus has spread through their body, they themselves show no symptoms of the virus. We call those carriers. Technically, they are infected and can spread the virus, but do not look infected themselves. Four, is you guys."

Ark looked a bit miffed to be included in the list. " What?"

Chad looked at him. " You've come into contact and have been affected by the virus, but not enough to consider you a serious case. Five is the ones who've come into contact and been infected, but are common infected. Special infected are the most serious case, as a very good percentage of them have lost their humanity. I doubt that if a cure was made, they would be treatable."

Sion looked at Chad. " What about us...?" he asked softly, climbing up the nearby hill towards a large billboard. " Can we be cured?"

Chad picked up a hunting rifle that had been left behind, checking the magazine in it. " Here, you'll make better use of it than me." he said. " And... I don't know." he told them.

Sion sighed and looked through the scope of his new rifle, lowering the weapon and making a face before looking again as the laughing got closer. " I think I see people..."

Ark and Chad both flew at Sion and his scope, both trying to see what he saw. " Seriously?" Ark said, Chad snatching the scope from Sion and looking through it. " It's just two... a young man and a woman." he said. " Both look like they're dog tired, but don't look infected."

Ark fumbled for the scope next, Sion yanking it back from both of them. He peered inside it again, watching the two. " They've been here a while. They're searching the rooms for medical supplies and food, but neither of them are injured. They must be doing a quick run to gather supplies for a third and possibly injured fourth teammate."

Ark looked at Sion. " Four?"

Sion nodded. " If I was injured, I'd want someone watching over me while I slept." he replied, letting out a cry of alarm when something small latched onto his back, giggling the entire time. They had been so focused on watching the pair of humans that none of them realized that something was sneaking up on them. Sion cried out again and yelped loudly as tiny sharp claws dug into his shoulders as the thing maneuvered onto his face, blocking his view completely, Ark and Chad trying to grab onto the little thing as Sion tried to move, instead falling off the billboard to the ground with a painful yelp.

Ark leapt from the building, landing on Sion and causing him further injury, digging his claws into the thing's back and trying to tear it off of Sion's face.

" Was that thing riding him?" Chad asked from up top the billboard, easing himself down slightly as he hurried to help. Neither Ark or Sion answered him as Ark drew back his fist and slugged it, managing to knock it away from Sion's face, the thing flopping over and giggling as it got back to it's feet. It was definitely infected, with eaten away lips and blood on it's mouth and arms, giggles escaping the chattering teeth. Small in size, it tried again to leap, but this time for Ark's face, it's long arms extended.

Ark leaned back and tried to duck, but the infected wrapped it's arms around Ark's neck, pulling itself close and leaning, forcing Ark's body to lean to the left even though he had no intentions to, a sharp scream escaping Ark's mouth as the infected tried to steer him away from Sion. Chad had gotten down next to them by now and grabbed a discarded baseball bat from the ground, swinging it and connecting with the small infected's hunched back, a satisfying crack heard as it released Ark, dropping to the ground where it was finished, Chad bringing the bat down on it's skull. The giggles finally ended when it died, Chad staring at the infected in horror.

" If this is the south, we're screwed." he said, Sion nodding and trying to do something about the scratches on his back and neck.

Ark in the meantime had huddled in the corner, trying to shake the mental image of being rode around like that from his mind. " Let...let's find those humans." he said, picking up his shattered pride. " They could be in trouble, with things like those around."

Sion nodded, getting to his feet. " Ix-nay on the kills-say though. Already got shot once, don't need another bullet hole to my growing collection of wounds."

* * *

The group headed towards the hotel room, finding one that was securely boarded up. It wasn't nearly as secure as a safehouse, but was well protected. Chad lowered the scope and handed the rifle back to Sion, the Smoker looking back in it, seeing the young man returning to the room. " I wanna see!" Ark said, fumbling for the scope, accidentally pulling the trigger and nearly shooting the young man.

" What the hell?" the man shouted, the woman jumping as well. " Someone just shot at me!" he said, nervously looking around.

" I'm sorry!" Ark said, practically bursting out of the room nearby. " Sorry, sorry, sorry! I didn't mean to fire, I was just trying to see if it was safe!" the man stared at him before tilting his cap gently. " Ya'll human and whatnot? Ain't been bit have you?" he asked warily.

Ark groaned and rolled his eyes. " No, I'm a rampaging infected! Of course I'm a survivor, and no I haven't been bit!" he shouted back. At that, the young man's face broke out into an energetic grin. " Well, hey there! I'm Ellis, and this is Rochelle!" he said, eagerly gesturing to the darker skinned woman . Rochelle nodded back at them, smiling softly. " Looking for the Evac as well?" she said softly.

Ark was instantly reminded of Zoey, his face breaking out into a wide, friendly grin. " Yeah... me, Sion, and Chad are all lookin' to get rescued." on his cue, Sion and Chad both came out of their hiding places. Chad gave them both a friendly smile, while Sion just had a wary look on his face. " Where is the place anyways?" Ark asked.

Ellis looked over at Ark. " Ya'll don' know where it is? We're headin' to the one at Whispering Oaks, but a friend o' mine got hurt... so we had ta stop to tend to him."

Sion put his hands in his pockets. " We just got here, that's why we didn't know." he said, Ellis and Rochelle nodding. Chad looked at the two, sliding his bag a little higher on his shoulder. " I can take a look at your injured friend... I'm a doctor." he said, lifting his head.

Rochelle beamed. " It's nice to meet someone like you. " She said, offering her hand to Chad. " Not many people want to help others in times like these."

Chad grinned widely and took her hand, shaking it gently. " I'm Chad." he said, giving her hand a firm shake before looking at the room. " Can we come in?" he said, Ellis nodding and knocking on the barricade. " Coach? We're back, and we've brought friends." he said, the door opening. A bit of a round man coming out, his dark skin covered in a sheen of sweat from working in the room. Ark could tell that the room was pretty warm, and he could smell blood and illness.

Chad gently smiled at Coach. " Name's Chad, I'm a doctor... is there anything I can do to help you guys?"

Coach stretched slightly, his school shirt damp from all the work. " We have an injured teammate... I'd be thankful if you could take a look at him. Been fighting all day with him to keep him down for healin'." His voice was very wary, it made Chad nervous. Ark and Sion could tell that the group was being friendly, but wouldn't hesitate in the slightest to shoot them.

Chad nodded and headed inside, motioning for Sion to turn on the light and open the windows. Once the light was on he could see his patient. A man was curled up on the bed in the hotel room, medical supplies scattered about, bloody bandages covering his shoulder. His eyes were closed painfully, breaths ragged as he laid on the bed. " This is Nick." Coach said, crossing his arms. " We were all travelin' together, and he got pounced by a Hunter or something, we found him in all the confusion with a torn up shoulder."

Ellis sat on the bed. " He can still fight an' everything, but he's hurting awful bad. Took a lotta medicine to get him under enough to carry him, what with his personality and whatnot."

Chad lifted an eyebrow. " Interesting personality. Let me see what I can do with him." he said, approaching Nick. Rolling Nick onto his uninjured side, he looked at the clothing that was being used as a pillow for him. " Sharp dresser, isn't he? But a white...er, was white... suit is not exactly ideal for trekking to safety."

Rochelle nodded. " Tell him that, he's always complaining about it too." She chuckled and hefted her axe onto her shoulder. " I guess you can say he'd be the most pessimistic of us all. Always complaining about little things."

Chad nodded. " I'll keep that in mind."

* * *

In the meantime, Ark and Ellis were becoming fast friends.

" One time, my buddy Keith and I went to the amusement park, and we were eatin' the cotton candy there, and Keith wondered if he could eat like five items from each booth in the whole park..." he continued on, Ark listening before interjecting his own tale.

" Well, when we were by the river, Sion and I tried to have a fishing contest and Sion was winning, so I jumped in the river to get more, but Sion decided he was gonna..." he told Ellis, rambling on.

Sion paled. " Oh god, there's two of them now."

* * *

End Chapter 25

Told ya I loved the south. As for how they got there, plain and simple, they didn't stop for anything, so they made damn good time down to the south. As for the incidents of the passing... totally ignored. Since when did I pay attention to the storyline anyways? Besides, we all wanna see Bill shoot Nick for that mouth and attitude of his. Not to mention, this is fanfiction, we're allowed to finagle with the laws anyways.

Ciao for now~!


	26. Personality

Chapter 26: Personality

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead 2

* * *

It didn't take long for the last of the new group to wake up, and when he did, the shit really hit the fan. Ark had been expecting Nick to be a nice person, but he was proven wrong almost instantly.

" Who the hell are you?" Nick snarled, his green eyes narrowed at the group. Ark retreated from the man in front of him, fearing the man's apparent temper. Chad gave the short-tempered man a look. " Hey, before you start throwing a fit or whatnot, how about telling us what happened?"

Nick closed his eyes before looking at Chad, tilting his head. " A Hunter got me. It pounced on me in the middle of the damned horde and started carving me up like a turkey on thanksgiving in a homeless shelter. Biggest damn Hunter I ever saw, knocked me over with next to no effort."

Chad looked at Ark, lifting an eyebrow slightly. " A Hunter, huh? We have them where we came from. We've got Hunters, Boomers, Smokers, Witches, and Tanks." Everybody in the room had a visible shudder when Chad mentioned the Tank, Ark and Sion shuddering from their own personal experiences.

Ellis took a candy bar out of his mouth. " We got alla those down here, along with Chargers, back-humpers, and the spittin' ones."

Sion lifted an eyebrow. " Err... I'm gonna assume that there's an actual name for them, right?"

Rochelle looked over at Sion. " More accurately named Jockeys and Spitters. He got the Charger part right. The Jockeys are little infected that jump on you and try to steer you around. Spitters can spit a powerful acid... it burns like you wouldn't believe. She gently pulled her sleeve back a bit to show them some treated acid burns on her shoulder. " I caught some on my shoulder once... it took a lot to get it off." she said softly.

Coach looked at Ark. " Jockeys, when they jump on you, it ain't right for a man to be ridden that way. I got ridden a few times, and let me tell you, it ain't no fun." He shuddered. " They'll steer you into trouble if you let them."

Nick was silent, appearing to size up the others as Coach and Rochelle spoke. Chad knew the look from experience, it was the look of someone who was more or less trying to figure out the new pecking order. He had seen that look all the time with the new recruits, the older members trying to figure out which were easy pickings for menial tasks. Nick was most likely trying to find gullible targets among their little group. Chad chuckled to himself, Nick would have one hell of a time with trying to make any of them bend to his will.

Nick made a few noises before checking his wound, tugging on the freshly changed bandage. Chad sat on the chair nearby, crossing his legs. " Don't tug on it." he instructed, looking out the window. " It's not deep, but if you take another hit like that one before it's healed, your arm might be busted to the point of surgery to save it. I'm capable of many things, but field surgery is not exactly one of my fields, especially in the middle of hordes.

Nick's hand instantly dropped from the bandages, but his glare never left his face.

* * *

Ark was keeping quiet, memorizing the scents of everyone in the room. Rochelle smelled pleasant, but every girl he's come across smelled nice. All of the men had different scents, but each of them were unique in their own way. Solaris had been right, Sion did have a smoky scent about him, while Chad smelled like medicine. Ellis smelled faintly of engine oil, and other various car products, Coach currently smelled like candy and sweat. Nick's scent was hard to determine, but eventually Ark picked up the scent of smoke, alcohol, and cologne. The cologne he was sure belonged to Nick, but the smoke scent was in the clothing more than his breath, and suggested that he had been near someone who smoked. He also figured that Nick probably enjoyed a drink a few hours ago, from the very faint smell of alcohol.

He could also smell exhaustion on Nick, the scent hanging over the man like a thick blanket. He was putting on a brave face, full of vigor and displays of his usual personality, according to the others, but Ark could tell that Nick was probably going to go back to sleep the minute someone wasn't watching him. The damage to Nick's shoulder had been enough to keep him down for a bit, and sure enough, after Chad was done checking his bandages and went to go talk with Coach, Nick quietly laid down and went back to sleep.

Ark had forgotten how fragile humans were, but even then, he was nearly as fragile. As an infected, he did possess a stronger healing ability, but not by much. All of his incredible leaps and jumps were spectacular to a human, but meager as infected. one wrong move, and just like a human, his head would be split open on concrete. In the meantime, he went back to examining the new survivors, trying to figure out more about them.

Coach, the leader, had a good head on his shoulders. Apparently, he used to coach a football team, and often spoke of the others as fellow team players. His attitude reminded Ark of Louis, the kind-hearted mediator between Francis and Bill, but Coach was definitely the leader.

Rochelle reminded Ark of an older Zoey, with a motherly nature about how she cared for the others. There were a lot of differences between the two, but Ark still smiled anyways, feeling as if he was back with Zoey. He wouldn't dare make a move on her though, that axe looked deadly.

Ellis was a strange one, but easy to get along with. The cheerful mechanic always had something nice to say about everyone, and it didn't take much for Ark to begin enjoying Ellis's company. Ark's train of thought was broken by Ellis speaking to him, the Hunter making a soft noise at hearing Ellis.

" -and when we found him again, the biggest Hunter I ever seen was tearin him to bits, I almost thought Nick was gonna die, cause there was so much blood everywhere, and he wouldn' wake up when I called to him the first time. Ro' was all worried and whatnot, but Nick woke up later that night, and we been in this place since." Ellis explained to Ark. Ark nodded, knowing the feeling of being scared for a teammate, remembering several incidents in the past.

He still felt horrible, that he couldn't reveal his actual nature to the new group, but there still wasn't enough trust built up yet. Ellis would probably think it was the coolest thing ever, but Coach and Rochelle wouldn't really take any chances. Nick... Nick was an insurmountable obstacle as far as he was concerned, and it seemed as if the older man's trust was not easily won with friendly words, he and Sion would struggle in gaining Nick's trust.

" Sorry to interrupt, but what does Nick do for a living?" Sion asked before Ark or Chad could think of a way to ask. " I mean, I've never seen an office worker or a teacher dressed so sharply, so he has to be doing something else."

" Well, he would be what one considers a con-artist." Rochelle said, folding her arms. " We were all surprised too, but I wonder what kind he is. His "silver tongue" seems to get him into more trouble than out of it." she said with a bit of humor. " Most of the time, he's just rude and cranky."

Sion laughed as well. " Sounds more like he's just got on and off mood swings." he said. " But then, if he's in that profession, I guess he doesn't see you as targets worthy of his time or something."

Coach shrugged. " Whatever the case may be, it still doesn't change the fact that he's one of us and we ain't leaving him behind to die. No matter how much he hates our guts and everything to do with us."

Chad nodded and shrugged. " I guess you guys are a great team in all. I was worried, but it looks like we don't have anything to worry about."

* * *

Ellis had grown bored of the giant group discussion, he wanted to check the perimeter to make sure that infected weren't growing in population and planning something. Not that he thought they were capable of incredible feats, but still, better safe than sorry. " Can I go check 'round outside?" he asked, waiting for an answer. Everyone was busy getting acquainted with their new guests and wasn't paying the slightest bit of attention to him. Ellis sighed and fingered his shotgun before a gloved hand clapped on his shoulder, one hand motioning for him to be quiet.

" If we're good enough, we'll be back inside before anyone knows we're gone." Ark said with a sly smirk, gesturing outside. The Hunter was getting stir-crazy as well, with the cramped hotel room and the general public outside. He wanted to go look around outside quickly, and be back inside before anyone could scold him for going out.

Ellis gave him a sly smile as well before going with the Hunter, both of them going outside and looking around. The motel was big, with several rooms available for searching around, Ark and Ellis going through them quietly. " What have we got 'ere?" Ellis asked after they had searched two rooms each.

Ark dumped a bottle of medicine, some sheets for bandages, some canned goods, and a bile bomb that he found laying discarded next to a body. " Not much." he sighed.

Ellis held out two extra bottles of medicine, some ammunition he found along with the shotgun it belonged to. " Ya found more than me, but I think I'm gonna hang onto the shotgun I found. Ya can have the one I was using if you want." he said.

Ark nodded and took the shotgun from Ellis. It was heavier than he would have liked, but beggars can't be choosers, the pistol that Chad had given him wasn't really good for much. " What's that you're carrying around?" he asked, gesturing to the metal tool that Ellis was carrying around, but hadn't made much mentioning of.

" Oh this thing? It's a tire iron that Keith gave me, after his car done plummet off a bridge one time. I kept it with me durin' our escape from the hotel in my hometown. " Ellis said, proudly lifting the tire iron. " I won' say it's a good luck charm, but it sure has come in handy a few times when my ammo was runnin' low."

Ark looked at Ellis. " What was that like?" he asked, genuinely curious.

Ellis smiled at Ark. " Ya know, not many people ask ta' hear me tell a story. Best be sure ta listen well, I talk fast." he said, making sure his grip on the tire iron was solid.

" It began when I first heard tha' news about a flu..." he said, closing his eyes. " I was workin' in the shop like usual, ain't no car left unturned where I work, so it was a hard day. 'bout four people needed repair jobs done immediately, and we could barely hear the radio Keith had set up in the shop. When we were almost done for the day, tha' news came on, blarin a report about a flu bug spreadin' like wildfire up north."

He walked around behind the motel, a small grassy field being populated by a few lazy commons, all getting shot before they knew Ellis and Ark were there as the mechanic continued on. " At first, we weren't worried. With all our swamps, humidity, and build in general, we weren't worried about a bug that was affectin' people outta the south. But then, it spread to us. People down the street who had moved in across from us were starting to look all pale and sick, and then, they attacked everyone. Bitting them and clawin' at people like they were some kinda animal. We had no choice but ta' shoot at them, and that's when Keith started to get nervous."

Ellis twirled his tire iron and sat down, looking at the sky and tilting his cap back. " He set out for the evac centers being set up in the big part o' town, and I told him that I would come too, once I was done with my project. I wanted to make sure I got there safely, so I armored up a car ta be rabid-person proof. I didn' know that they were infected, but I wasn't takin any chances. I didn't wanna end up like those bitten. But, turns out they were practicin' early gang-up techniques, and I had ta scram real quick. It was hell in the city, with people shootin at anyone who looked sick, or approached them funny. I ran to the evac center they were settin up in a hotel, figured I'd get on one of the whirly-birds instead of a car to escape."

He laughed softly. " But... I was too late. The copter was all loaded up, and wasn't waiting for no one anymore. Me and three others were stuck on the roof with no where to go. We all grabbed some weapons, I got some pistols that time, and decied we would follow the copters to the evac center in the mall."

Ark looked at Ellis. " They set up a center in a mall?" he asked.

Ellis nodded in reply. " Yup. I guess they figured it was big enough to hold all of the panickin' people. Anyways, we started to make our way down the building... which was a trip in itself, cause the building was on FIRE. I dunno how it started, but we were climbin out on ledges and everythin' to avoid all the flames. We almost lost Coach on one of those ledges, cause Nick wouldn't help with pulling him back up after one of those regular infected had slammed into Coach and nearly knocked him off. Ro' musta threatened him or somethin, because only after a minute did he help."

Ark scratched his head softly. " Seems the type." he commented, remembering his first opinion of Nick. Ellis only offered a slight agreeing shrug before returning to his lengthy story.

" We managed to find a workin' elevator to get us outta the building, and headed out of the burning place to the first safehouse after we all got acquainted with one another." Ellis said, indicating their group. " Then we set out to the mall, which is a whole 'nother story. But ta wrap it up, when we reached the mall, there was no rescue waiting for us there."

Ark bit his lip. " That had to have really sucked." he said, picking at his glove. Ellis let out a loud, sharp laugh. " You have no idea how much that bit." he agreed. " But we found a way. Jimmy Gibbs, the race car driver, was havin' a show at the mall, and we used his car to escape." Ellis stopped for a moment to wistfully wipe at his eyes. " We had to leave Jimmy Gibbs Jr. behind though... Just couldn't get it over all the dead cars on the highway. We made it to here, and then Nick got attacked by that hunter, and the story ends there."

Ark nodded, grateful to have been brought to speed on what was going on. " Thanks for bringing me up to speed." he said, tilting his head.

" Naw, thank you for sittin' and listenin'." Ellis said, grinning. " Everyone usually tells me to shut up or save it for later whenever I try to lighten the mood around here." he got to his feet as a thick tongue wrapped around his waist and pulled him down away from the motel wall. " What the hell?" he shouted in alarm, Ark scrambling to his feet.

It was always wiser to track down the source of the tongue if one could, Ark running past Ellis and following the extended appendage, almost throwing up at what he saw. The Smoker before him was unlike anything he had ever seen in Mercy city, or the forest. The southern version was even bigger, and the tumor-like mass on the left side of it's face seemed to extend down to the shoulder, and was pulsing. The once pale skin was now a tan color, and the boils were covering the arms and making them even more grotesque. But what made horror well up inside him uncomfortably was the sheer number of tongues growing from it's body. Having been with Sion for so long, he was used to the single tongue extending from the mouth, but the southern Smoker had several growing out of the tumorous mass, and even on the other side of the head.

Fighting the urge to get sick, Ark pulled the trigger on the shotgun, landing a full blow into the tongue and body of the Smoker, the appendage ripping in two as the Smoker was stunned, stumbling back and trying to escape. " Tougher than the north..." Ark said under his breath, bringing his legs under his body and pinning the Smoker to the ground with a sharp kick, one foot on it's neck, the other on it's spine. Jumping up, he landed on the body with a painful crack, the Smoker falling limp under his feet.

" Goddamn tongues, did you get it?" Ellis said, coughing from all the smoke released upon the death of the Smoker. Ark nodded, coughing and wiping at his eyes, trying to ease the stinging sensation, stepping backwards, only to slide back. " Wait, there's a steep gully there!" Ellis cried, trying to leap forward and steady Ark, grabbing his hand and getting pulled down as both men tumbled down the gully, Ark landing in the gully down below with a yelp, Ellis hitting a tree branch before falling beside Ark, groaning as his face was submerged in the water. " Ouch..."

Ark pulled his hair out of the murky water with a groan, rubbing what he knew would become a knot on the back of his head, groaning as he tried to get Ellis up, shaking the mechanic's shoulder. " Ellis?"

Ellis let out a groan as well, rubbing his abdomen. " Ow, I think I'm gonna be sick..." he complained, having landed on his stomach. Ark gently patted his back. " Throw up if you need to, I'm gonna see if I can get back up." he said, struggling to his feet.

His shotgun was long since missing, he bet he had dropped it somewhere in the fall and damned if he was gonna look for it, instead trying to see if he could get back up. It was a steep climb, and one misstep would send him flying back to the bottom with some new bruises to add to his collection. It would be easier to use a rope to try and climb back up, but they didn't have anything like that, except for the supplies they had scavenged for earlier.

Lifting his head up, he cupped his hands around his mouth. " Sionnnnn!" he called, trying to see if he could get ahold of his Smoker friend.

No one replied, except for the scream of the approaching horde.

Ark turned to face the horde sloshing through the water towards him and Ellis. " Shit."

* * *

Raise your hand if you've fallen off the ledge by the motel earlier than you wanted to thanks to an infected. *is only person raising hand* ... don't act like it's just me! Anyways, I had a lot of fun with this chapter, even if much didn't happen. Dark carnival is the bane of my existence... D I will beat it on expert someday!

Ciao for now~


	27. Massacre

Chapter 27: Massacre

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead 2

* * *

Ark made a noise as the horde rushed at them, pulling Ellis to his feet, the mechanic gagging from all of the water and smells. " This stinks!" Ellis commented, spitting some water out and hefting his tire iron, prepared to fight for his life as the horde lunged for them. Ark could have sworn that the horde wasn't nearly as big from when he saw it from on top of the ledge, but all things looked small from a distance anyways. Ellis let out a cry as he was pulled into the murky water by a common infected, Ark growling under his breath before trying to reach the mechanic.

It was his fault for dragging Ellis outside and down the slope, and the others would kill him if something as simple as a horde managed to kill Ellis. He doubted the other man would go down that easy, but better safe than sorry. Finding Ellis in the crowd, swinging his tire iron like it was an extension of his arm, Ark had to duck once to avoid getting hit.

" Sorry, heat of the moment!" Ellis apologized once the fight had ended, Ark giving him an indignant look before shaking some blood off his hands. A few broken teeth lay scattered about as Ark continued to clean the blood off, looking back up the hill, his face showing his frustration. How on earth was he going to get back up there without relying on his ability to pounce? Bringing his hands up to his mouth, he tried again. " SIONNNNN!"

Again, no reply from his Smoker friend, the Hunter groaning and slugging a tree, the branches shaking. " They'll come for us." Ellis said, wringing out his hat and putting it back on. " Nick can't sleep forever, and Ro' an' Coach will get worried and wanna look. We jus' gotta stay alive 'till then." he said, twirling his tire iron. He didn't look like he was scared in the slightest, but Ark himself was fearful. He didn't know where he was, and the southern smoker from earlier had upset him. What on earth did the southern version of a Hunter look like? It scared him to think that while in the north, he was a bigshot, but in the south, he was a nobody.

Biting his lip, he called one more time before giving up, flopping down in the murky water as Ellis tried to lift his spirit. " Don't give up, Ark, they probably worryin' about Nick right now. Won' be long before they realize we ain't there."

* * *

" WHERE THE FUCK ARE THEY?" Nick roared, angrily pulling his suit jacket on. Chad jumped from the sheer volume of Nick's voice as the clearly angry conman started getting his things together. " I take a single goddamn nap, and that dumbshit hick ran off somewhere and is most likely part of a damned Jockey family reunion right now."

" I feel sorry for him if he is." Rochelle chuckled, trying to get the image of a giant herd of jockeys all partying out of her mind. " Anyways, glad to see you on your feet again, Nick."

" Still kicking, I'm not giving those zombies the benefit of a doubt." Nick said, crossing his arms. His shoulder still ached and stung like nobody's business, but kicking Ellis's ass was always high on his list of 'Ways to deal with my current situation.'

Coach picked his shotgun back up. " You sure you ready to get going?" he asked, Nick giving him a look. " I'm good, Coach. Stop worrying." he said, his voice clipped.

Rochelle looked over at Chad, who was playing a card game with Sion. " Is he okay to be moving around?" she asked, Nick doing a double take at seeing Chad and Sion. " When did they get here?" he demanded, Chad not getting a chance to reply to Rochelle's question.

" They've been here a while now, Nick." Coach said, slinging his pack on. " You must have been too tired or a bit out of it to remember talking to them." Nick wouldn't admit it in the slightest, but Coach headed him off at the pass before he got his next line out. " And before you say it, they ARE coming wit' us."

Nick looked a bit ticked that he didn't gain any ground in that argument, but Sion was still willing to try and make friends, extending his hand to Nick. " Hi there, name's Sion." Sion said, smiling.

Nick didn't bother with the handshake, reloading his magnum. " Nick, name's Nick. Hope you know how to fight, you don't look it."

Sion gave a curt smile, his patience fraying a bit. " Really? This coming from the guy with the fucked up shoulder from not paying attention."

Nick's expression showed that he too, was struggling to be courteous. " Only happened because I had something on my mind." he said swiftly. " Happens to even the best of us."

" You were thinking about a lesser infected gal's rack, weren't you?"

" I haven't sunk that low."

" Yet."

" You had better not be implying something, asshole."

" I can, and will, dickhead."

" Girls, girls, stop fighting, you're both pretty!" Rochelle interjected, pushing the two quarreling men apart. When Nick and Sion stopped glaring at each other to give her a look, she gave them an equal look right back. " Got you to stop fighting, didn't it?" she said, lifting an eyebrow.

Chad was doing his best to keep from laughing. " Oh my god, two of them." he said in between chuckles.

* * *

" I spy with my little eye... something blue." Ellis said, humming.

" My shirt." Ark deadpanned, not taking his eyes off the hill.

" Aw come on, Ark, you ain't even playing!" Ellis complained, picking at his clothing. " I mean, it ain't like we got much ta do, but you could at least try to make a little effort!"

" If we make too much noise, they'll come back." Ark said flatly, looking at Ellis. " Or haven't we learned our lesson from the last two hordes?" he didn't want to be rude to Ellis, but the constant hordes were taxing, especially considering he was using a bit of broken pipe as a weapon. He doubted he would be this winded if he was using his claws and legs, but again, didn't want to get in trouble.

Damn his morals.

Lifting his head, he sniffed the air before covering his nose. The scent of a Hunter was nearby, but it was hesitant, like it wasn't quite willing to pounce just yet. He growled a soft warning to it, before yelping as a shape knocked him flat, a southern Hunter leaping for Ellis with a deep, rumbling growl. Ellis didn't have much time to react as the wild Hunter landed on him, dragging him away from Ark. The Southern variety of the Hunter was bigger than he was, and had torn off some of it's clothing to possibly deal with the heat. Ellis was no pushover though, and he slugged the snarling infected in the jaw, hearing a loud yelp as the Hunter's head was forced to the side with the blow.

Ark got to his feet and swung his fist into the Hunter's back once he caught up to them, knocking the Hunter from Ellis's body, the infected stumbling slightly before Ellis pulled out his pistol and shot it a few times, one bullet piercing it's skull. " That...that's a southern Hunter?" Ark breathed, wiping some sweat off his face. His clothing was soaked to the point where he thought he wouldn't be dry for a week. It was getting too hard to move with soggy clothing, so he removed his shirt and set it aside for the moment.

Ellis nodded, getting up. " Yup, that's what we got down 'ere. Why, ya'll got something different?"

" Not as big." Ark replied. " And paler."

Ellis shrugged. " Glad ta know that there isn't too much of a difference. I'd be kinda worried if I found out they were different dependin' on where ya' went."

Ark shrugged before hearing a loud curse and yelp, something white and green tumbling into the murky water.

" Great, this is real fucking great. This shit will never come out, and believe me, I've had WORSE things get into this suit!" an angry voice complained.

"That's gotta be Nick." Ellis said cheerfully. " Ain't never met a man before who can bitch about his suit like he can." he happily ran over to where Nick had fallen, the conman sitting on top of Sion, who was face down in the water.

"Get your heavy ass off of me!" Sion snarled, shoving Nick back into the water as Rochelle slid down, Coach not too far behind her. Nick fell into the water with a splash, balling his fists and glaring at Sion, the Smoker glaring right back. Rochelle groaned as she watched the two, Coach holding out his hand to help Sion get to his feet as Ellis cheerfully bounced over to Nick. " 'ey, where's the other guy? You know, the doctor?" he asked, looking around.

" Up there, being a big baby." Rochelle answered with a smile, pointing at Chad, who was clinging to a tree branch. " He's convinced that the hill will break his neck."

Coach laughed as well. " Chad, it ain't gon' kill you. There are plenty of other things down here that'll do that for you."

" All the more reason not to go." Chad sighed. " But... I doubt I could live through all of this in a tree." he let go of the tree branch and slid down, wobbling as he made a shaky landing at the bottom of the slope. " Wimp." Nick commented, brushing some dust off his suit and trying not to cringe at the feel of the murky water beneath his feet. " Let's just get the hell out of this river, I can't stand the feel of it."

Sion stretched his arms. " I agree with him, let's hurry it up." he said, Ark grabbing him and dragging him behind the nearby rocks. " The HELL, Ark?" he snapped, irritated.

" First, stop acting like Nick. I know he annoys you, but don't jump on the bandwagon." Ark said quietly. " Second, we're in over our heads on this one... I saw a southern Smoker and a Hunter. We are totally outclassed there."

Sion groaned. " I figured. And look, Ark, it's not like I'm doing it on purpose. When was the last time we had anything decent to eat? I'm hungry, and it's making my mood sour. I'm sure you've had a less than sunny outlook on life earlier as well?"

Ark remembered his mood from earlier, playing I spy with Ellis. " Oh... guess you're right, we haven't really eaten anything worthwhile, have we?" he whined. " Burger burger burger..."

Sion looked at him. " We're going to an amusement park, right? There's bound to be food!" he said, loud enough for everyone to hear. Ark took a moment to process that, Sion watching the rusty gears begining to turn in his head.

" BURGER!" Ark yelled, sloshing towards the searchlights as Ellis yelled " COTTON CANDY!" and started to follow him, Nick's jaw falling slack.

" It's official. I've entered the next level of hell. TWO of the little dumbshit hick..." He groaned, walking along.

" Mmm...mmm... Peach cobbler..." Coach said dreamily, Nick raising an eyebrow. " And our great leader is thinking with his gut instead of his head."

Rochelle patted Nick's back and tossed a new weapon to Ark, letting him use a baseball bat for a weapon as they made their way down the river and up the nearby hill, the hunter pulling his shirt back on along the way. After ten minutes had passed, nearly everyone wanted to hit or do unspeakable things to Nick, who seemed to have a complaint for everything.

" Maybe we should give him a complaint box to write all this shit in and then burn the damn thing." Chad grumbled under his breath as he struggled up the side of the hill, Ark climbing up like it was nothing. " Hey guys! Come look!" he called to them, sounding worried.

" Unless it's a fully-armored jet that'll fly us out of here, I am not interested." Nick shot back.

" Geeze, Nick, it won't hurt ta look..." Ellis said, climbing a bit faster. Once they got up there, they got to see what Ark was worried about, a massacre was laid before them. Bodies littered the whole place, some torn to pieces, others with gaping holes in their chests, and a few missing their heads and shoulders. " What the hell happened here?" Sion said quietly, stepping around a body that had it's head caved in. Rochelle felt sick from looking at it all, and more or less covered her eyes and had to be lead by Coach, who offered up all sorts of prayers. " It looks like someone went crazy with a sword... or just plain crazy."

Chad's eyes were dinner plates as he walked, unable to believe the level of carnage in the area, Ark taking great care to not step on anything, Ellis repeating Sion's question. " What the hell happened here?" he asked the others, as if expecting them to have the answer.

" Whatever it is, let's not be here if it comes back." Nick said, a bit startled from the sight, mainly because it was so close by. Who knows, if he hadn't gotten injured and they were able to go at a normal pace, they might have been caught up in that massacre. Even for the humans of the group, the smell of blood and death were overpowering in the small area, Chad covering his nose to look at the bodies, crouching to tilt one body over.

" They long gone, son." Coach said, watching Chad fiddle with his bag. " I don't think anything will fix this."

Chad pulled out a jar. " That's not it... this wound... it's a claw mark. Not a Witch, but a Hunter." he held out a broken Hunter claw that he had gotten long ago to prove his point.

" On which planet does a Hunter do this much damage?" Sion said, looking around the area, scared now. " And why aren't we leaving?"

Coach watched as Chad examined the claw marks, shaking his head. " We had better get moving, Chad..." he said softly, Chad finishing up quickly with a slow nod. Coach still was leading Rochelle along, since she still refused to take in anymore of the sight, spotting the safehouse up ahead. " Safehouse over there, we should hurry inside." he said, hurrying towards it, his tone suggesting that he wanted to put some immediate distance between the group and the battlefield, not that anyone could blame him.

Once Coach and Rochelle were inside the safehouse, Nick and Ellis checked the perimeter before quickly heading inside, Ark and Sion watching Chad examine the damage some more from where he stood.

" What kind of infected could have done this amount of damage?" Sion asked, looking at Chad. The medic looked back at Sion, pushing a few floppy strands of hair from his face.

" What do you mean, 'what kind of infected?' you mean, 'how many infected?' " Chad said. " There was a fight here... infected versus infected. All of these bodies here was the collateral damage. If you want to consider the infected as being the predators of the area, then whatever did this... could be considered a super predator... if at all. This is far beyond anything you guys can do, but an older and wiser infected..."

" We're in way over our heads." Ark finished for him, his tone quiet.

* * *

End Chapter 27

And more foreshadowing... next chapter, let's play in the carnival! It's a festival of blood and mystery! er... maybe not the last part.

Read and Review, and please be nice!

Ciao for now!


	28. Fun

Chapter 28: Fun

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead 2

* * *

Tried to go for a more humor route... hope it works!

* * *

Ark looked outside the bars of the safehouse door, eager to go rushing into the amusement park. " Man, ya gotta check out Kiddyland... it's the most fun part of the whole park!" Ellis was saying, also looking out through the safehouse bars, the two acting like little children with their noses pressed against the glass window of a toy store.

" What I want to know is, why the hell are we going through a frickin' amusement park?" Nick asked, checking the ammunition of his magnum, looking through the ammo cache for extras. Chad tossed him an extra magazine, shouldering his bag. " It's our only option, Nick. Unless you want to go outside and meet whatever significantly lowered the infected population back there."

Nick gave Chad a look. " And what odds do we have that whatever did that isn't IN the park?"

Coach nibbled on a candy bar, giving one to Rochelle. " We're just going to have to deal, Nick... and pray that we don't get that unlucky."

Sion was quiet, going over all the ammunition and trying to find a good pick before eventually just taking a submachine gun, sighing. He wanted something with a scope, to make good use of his eyesight, but hunting rifles weren't exactly easy to come by. Chad said that they would find one eventually, and when they did, he would be the first one to get to try it.

Rochelle came over and put her hand on the door. " Shall we, gentlemen?"

Everyone nodded and she pushed the door open, the group filing out into the park. Ark had heard stories from Chad about how the friendliest of places could seem scary when it was dark, and now he believed it. The park's once bright colored signs and tents seemed like eerie portals into the abyss, each one inviting unwary souls into absolute doom, seeing as how infected were all over them.

" Cheery..." Rochelle murmured.

" As far as evac centers go, this is not the worst place to hole up." Nick admitted.

" I can't possibly imagine your idea of a worst place." Coach said.

Nick looked at him. " The mall had to have been the worst one I've seen so far. Not too many places to go or hide in there. I couldn't believe the sheer number of infected in there... I though half the savannah was in there."

Ellis made a face. " My home ain't that small, Nick. S' probably one of the biggest places in the south!"

" To you, maybe." Nick shot back.

Chad stopped the two. " Evac. Safety. No zombies? That way." he said, gesturing to the carnival. " Let's go."

Ark was impressed at how fast Chad got Ellis to calm down, though Nick seemed in a mood to squabble with someone, because he resorted to trying to get a rise out of Ellis or Sion, the latter wanting to strangle him. Aside from the usual quips from Ellis, the walk was quiet until they found all of the food booths.

" PLEASE can we stop and make some cotton candy?" Ellis begged. " Just a few minutes! I swear!" He was clinging to Rochelle like a lost child, Ark doing the same to Chad. " PLEASE?" The both of them cried. Chad looked over at Rochelle with a look of " Tell me what to do, because I have no idea how to deal with two bawling men" and she simply shook her head and smiled.

" Ellis, sweetie, it's everyone's decision, not just mine." she said soothingly, petting Ellis's cap. " If enough vote no, then it's no, sadly." Ellis looked up at her and then cast a glance over at Coach, soon realizing that he didn't need to. Coach was already cooking up some hotdogs at another booth, humming happily as he worked, turning one over.

Ark had long since released Chad and was hovering nearby Coach, tongue hanging out of his mouth. Chad could tell that if Ark had been a dog, his tail would be wagging as he waited for the hotdogs to be done. " Guess we have our answer, eh?" Sion said cheerfully, running to go help by protecting the area. Nick opened his mouth to protest, but he was cut off by his own stomach growling, the con-man sighing and trudging over to the group to see what he could do.

* * *

" Well, this is entertaining." Sion said dryly, looking at his companion for the assignment of protecting the area. " Are they doing this to us on purpose?"

Nick glared at him. " I'm starting to wonder."

The two continued to exchange pointless heated glares before Sion eventually sighed and lit a cigarette. " Damnit. Told Ark I'd quit, but I need the nicotine right now." he said, exhaling a plume of smoke into the air. Nick said nothing, looking out into the area. " So, where the hell are you guys from?"

Sion took another deep drag on his cigarette. " Somewhere closer to New York, if I had to guess... so many lesser infected it's all been a blur."

Nick raised an eyebrow. " Lesser?"

Sion quickly covered himself. " Commons. Regular zombies. Take your pick. I call them lessers because they run straight into your gun, doesn't have a sense of self preservation."

Nick nodded, leaning against a tent wall. " That's a given. Problem is there's so damn many of them. So much for the old additive of no more than twenty in a horde. Bullshit, I've counted over fifty, because that's what took my assault rifle last time."

Sion chuckled. " Yeah, sometimes ammunition is hard to come by. Really easy to get pistol and shotgun ammunition, hardly a person out there who doesn't own one of the two... but start getting fancy with the guns, and you really gotta watch your ammo. Sadly, a pistol won't take a Tank out. I've tried."

Nick snorted. " You took on a Tank with pistols? You're either one brave or stupid bastard."

Sion gave him a half smile. " I'd put myself in the stupid category... wasn't a good idea at the time. Lucky I've got those two to save me from my own stupidity." he gestured over at Ark and Chad, who were working on the tables. " Saved my ass more than once."

Nick cast a glance over at them, not really having a solid opinion of them yet. Sion occasionally rose to the challenge when he wanted a scuffle, but if he had to pick a title for Chad... it would be " Yes Man." Chad seemed to never say no to anything, and would always find ways of talking people out of or into things.

Ark, he had no options about, mainly because he hadn't had the opportunity to talk with the man. He seemed to be as enthusiastic about things as Ellis was, but his eyes held a much more intelligent spark. His thoughts all scrambled at once when he heard a scream, grabbing his magnum at the same time Sion drew his weapon, both running to where they heard the scream, looking up to see Ark shaking and clinging to a pole.

" What the?" Nick said long before Sion could.

" Get it away!" Ark bawled from his spot on the pole.

Sion looked over at the trash bins, where Ark had fled from, looking at the cockroaches that was sitting in the bin. " Don't tell me you're afraid of cockroaches."

Ark gave him a heated look. " I am not afraid of them. I just can't stand them!"

Sion, winner of the "Best Friend of the Year" award, reached into the bin, grabbed a big cockroach, and tossed it at him. " Catch."

"#$%^&*(*&^ Sion you son of a %$#! I hope you fall down a #$%^&* well and find a (*&^%$# Jockey and his !#$%^&*(*&^%$#!"

" There's your answer." Nick said, trying his hardest not to laugh at Ark fleeing from the scene. Chad laughed and went to go retrieve him, Sion walking back to his post. Nick soon followed, halting when he heard a sound. His fingers tensing around the magnum, he crept towards the source of the noise slowly.

Keeping a wary eye on everything, ready to turn and sprint at a second's notice, he went to the source of the sound, noting it sounded a lot like sobbing. His mind instantly screamed "WITCH!" and he backed up, but then the logical part of his brain caught up with his instincts. The sobbing was in front of him, if he just kept calm and backed up slowly, he wouldn't startle her. Inching backwards, he backed away from the area, returning to the others. Everyone was eating now, with Chad and Ark on guard duty, Nick walking over to them first.

" Witch over there." he said, gesturing in that direction. " Do we have to go that way?"

Chad shrugged. " I'm not a native here, you'd best ask Ellis or Coach."

Nick sighed and trudged over to Coach to ask, as well as get some food, making a mental note of where the Witch was.

* * *

Sion walked around the area with an overly enthusiastic Ellis, the younger man happy to share all of his and Keith's harrowing adventures. All at once. Sion chuckled slightly to himself. " Now I know why Nick's wound tighter than a drum near this guy..."

" Ya say somethin'?" Ellis asked, breaking in the story for a moment.

Sion shook his head, opening his mouth to reply only to shut it when he heard a squeaking sound. " What was that noise?"

Ellis looked at Sion, making a noise. " Errr uhh... what noise?" he asked, whirling around when he heard the squeaking sound as well. " Uhh... now I can hear it."

Sion looked around, worried. " Crap... you guys got anything that squeaks?"

Ellis shook his head. " Naw we got something that occasionally squeals, snorts, or laughs." on cue, some crazy maniacal laughter sounded nearby. " Yeah, like that kind of laughin- aw hell."

Sion looked up just in time to see a Jockey land on his face. " OHGODITSONMYFUCKINGFACE GETITTHEHELLOFFOFMYFACE" he cried, flailing in panic as Ellis chased him with the tire iron, trying to get it off him.

" Hang on, I'ma gonna git' it off your face, jus' hold still!" Ellis growled, swinging the tire iron like a baseball bat. Sion whimpered and held still, trying to resist the Jockey's movements, Ellis finally connecting with it. He gasped once it fell off his face, spitting and shaking his head. " Damn it all... I HATE Jockeys."

" Haven't met a single person who does like them." Ellis said, crushing the Jockey.

Sion looked back at him. " You guys sure do have it rough in the south. How about we round up the others and get going? I don't want to hang around for the squeaking thing." his nervous side was back again, and the feeling that they should leave before things got bad was rising up.

" Sure thing, I'll go round them up!"

* * *

"All right ya'll, let's make this a quick trip." Coach said, holstering his shot gun. " We all got some food in us, now time to get some rest in us as well. Can't keep goin' on little sleep."

Chad looked at Nick. " How long has it been since you guys last slept?"

" Not counting when I was injured, no one's really had any decent sleep since we left the hotel." Nick said, giving Chad a critical look.

Ark made a sound. " I heard the whole story from Ellis." he said, looking up when he heard a deafening cry. " But it looks like we will have to discuss this later." Chad finished, picking up his gun.

The horde came rushing at them, seemingly from nowhere, all of the survivors taking up defensive stances to keep themselves from being bitten or pummeled. Sion was relying on his good eyesight to keep things on an even playing field, and Ark was stuck with the same baseball bat he had received earlier. " This is starting to get real damn old." Nick commented.

" I completely agree with you." Rochelle said, sighing deeply.

"Why are you bein' so mopey, I'm having the time of my life!" Ellis crowed, swinging his tire iron into an infected's head. Coach shook his head in return. " You ain't right, boy." he commented, hearing some squeaking sounds. " And what the hell is that noise?"

Sion made a face. " The squeaking from earlier... wonder what the hell it is."

Ark tensed up, ready to take on anything besides a Tank, his shoulders falling slack at seeing a funny looking infected running towards them, making the squeaking sounds. " Uh...?"

Rochelle's shoulders fell as well. " Is that a...clown?"

Coach squinted his eyes. " Well hell, it ain't no policeman." he tilted his head, looking behind it. " And he's got friends!"

Chad lifted his gun to aim at the horde. " It's the squeaky shoes! It's a lure to the others!"

Nick snorted, firing at the clown. " Thank you for the observation. Less talk, more shoot!"

Chad glared at Nick before firing into the crowd, Ark and Ellis keeping them safe from rear attacks with their melee weapons. With the addition of Chad and Sion to the gun assault, the horde dropped much quicker, Coach giving them all a grateful look. " Extra hands sure makes the job easier."

Chad waved his hand softly. " We all gotta help each other out." he said, smiling. Rochelle smiled back, along with Ellis and Coach. Nick merely gave Chad a somewhat acknowledging nod of his head, walking forward, one hand on his injured shoulder.

" Anybody see a way around this fence?" Rochelle said, breaking the silence. "I'm sure that there is a safe house on the other side..."

Nick looked up at the fence, spotting a merry-go-round inside. " A fenced in carousel? Look, Ellis, it's your old playground!" he snorted. Coach shot him a look and found the switches. " I think we can turn on the power, and open the fence."

Sion made a face. " Ten to one says that turns on something else too."

" I'll take that bet." Nick said, making a similar face.

Coach attempted to inject some humor into the situation. " Hey, sign says you gotta be this tall to ride."

Everyone looked at Ark, who could be considered the shortest male of the group. " Bite me." he growled, going to pull the switch.

" Tastes bad." Sion said jokingly, wincing as the gate opened with a loud screech. " DAMN that's loud..." Nick said for everyone, Ellis looking up as he heard the horde's cry.

" Ya'll get ready now, here they come!" he shouted, lifting his tire iron.

Ark couldn't believe how frantic things got all of a sudden. Everyone was doing their best to stay together, or at least get within helping distance of each other. The last time he remembered something this frantic was the mad scramble towards the helicopter to get to safety on the roof of Mercy Hospital... and he didn't want to EVER go through that again. Hunter skills or not, he and the others could have very well died there.

" Someone turn off the merry-go-round! It started up!" Rochelle cried over the roar of the infected, Ellis and Coach immediately running to try and do that. They were the only two natives of the savannah, and also the only ones with knowledge of the amusement park.

Ellis was the first to reach the area where the controls were kept, looking for a second before twirling on his heel, running back. A Tank bellowed and chased after him, the tire iron no match for the over muscled beast. " Comin' through! Tank on my ass! Outta my way!" he shouted, running pass Coach, who turned and sprinted away as well, wide eyed as the Tank chased the both of them. Nick and Rochelle were being pinned down by a nasty horde, the two fighting bitterly despite the growing horde. Sion and Ark were balancing the two out in another area, Ark smacking a clown in it's face, taking small delight in hearing it's nose squeak. Chad broke off from Sion and Ark to go help Rochelle and Nick, making his way through the horde to try and help them, going at a steady but slow pace. " Someone has GOT to turn that damn alarm OFF!" Sion yelled, smacking a common in the face.

Everyone unanimously agreed with him, but as of the moment, everyone's hands were tied in their own way.

Chad fired straight into the head of a common, hearing a hacking sound before seeing some glowing green ooze headed his way. Danger instincts overriding the drive to go forward, he stumbled backwards, falling onto Rochelle, the green goop splattering near and on his pant leg. Almost immediately, he felt a searing pain in his leg, looking down to see the ooze eating through the fabric onto his skin. " GAH! GODDAMN IT, WHAT THE HELL IS THIS CRAP?"

Rochelle grunted and rolled Chad off of her, getting to her feet and shooting the Spitter before it could try again, Chad retreating from the fight long enough to get the acid off of his leg, wincing as he walked. Nick was being swiftly overwhelmed by a few infected, the conman retreating to another area, his ears still ringing from the alarm, but managing to reach it while the horde seemed to be elsewhere.

" How the hell did you two get in there?" he screamed in disbelief, watching Ellis and Coach running around in the merry-go-round, the tank hot on their heels. Turning his head, he saw a giant hole in the fence. " Oh, that's how." Pulling the lever, he was granted relief from the loud alarm, instead focusing on trying to help, mainly because Coach had a powerful gun and deadly aim. A lot more comforting to have than to dismiss.

Rochelle was helping Chad limp along, Ark and Sion now catching up to see all three men running through the merry go round, Nick being chased by a Charger.

" You know, if it wasn't for the fact that they're in mortal danger, this would actually be pretty funny." Chad said, watching the show.

* * *

End Chapter 28

Shock hit me today... I realized that I have been working on this story for years now... I am truly amazed.

Anyways, flames will be ignored, reviews are always welcome!

Ciao~


	29. Safehouse

Chapter 29: Safehouse

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead 2

* * *

" Keep running, those things are right behind you!" Rochelle cried.

" GEE YA THINK?" Ellis shouted back. He didn't mean to be rude, but there was a TANK after him, which tended to put even him in a bad mood. Nick was running in front of him, and Coach was behind him, the Tank bellowing as it charged after the two, Coach leaping over the body of the Charger. Thanks to a lucky roundabout shot, the Charger was dead, but the Tank was not. The hulking beast bellowed as it tried to grab Coach, the man lunging out of the way and hiding behind a brightly painted horse, making a face at it's paint job. Whoever painted these last had to have been drinking.

" Hey, this way!" Ellis cried, bolting past Coach and leaping for the hole in the fence, hitting it hard with a grunt. Something dug into his side, but he ignored it, pulling himself through it, Nick soon following. Coach was the last one through, followed by the Tank, which punched another hole in the fence, tossing a badly painted horse after them. A well aimed molotov then hit the Tank's flesh, igniting it like paper, the infected roaring its displeasure, slamming its fists into the ground. Sion had always admired how certain infected managed to burn so well, smirking as the flaming Tank tried to make their way towards them.

Ark held the lighter tightly, lighting another molotov and tossing it onto the tank for good measure, glad his aim was good. The pungent smell of burning flesh assaulted his nose like a whip, but he dealt with it and kept going, holding his breath to stave off the smell. It was important to keep that Tank busy long enough for the rest of them to escape. Chad and Rochelle opened fire on the Tank, Coach grabbing for his shotgun and firing at the Tank, now in an area to where he could fight back without injury. Nick ran ahead with Ellis towards the safehouse, the conman blanching at the sight of the tunnel of love.

" Oh hell no."

Ellis held his side tightly, stumbling along with him towards the safehouse, suddenly being swept off his feet by another Charger, the infected beast carrying him towards a nearby walk, slamming him against the unforgiving wall. The mechanic let out a pained yell, Nick spinning on his heel to go help him.

His magnum wasn't nearly enough to deal damage, but Ellis's fallen tire iron was more than enough to do some damage, the conman scooping it up from where it had fallen, bringing it down on the Charger's head. A sickening crack sounded, Nick giving a satisfied smirk before swinging it again, a tearing sensation in his arm making him hiss and clench his teeth, the Charger dropping Ellis and falling over with a caved in skull. Ellis fell to the ground like a rag, his arms and legs splayed out awkwardly, the Charger falling on top of him.

Nick winced, holding his injured shoulder. The wound felt like it wanted to open, but he held it tightly, glaring at the Charger's body. " Ellis. Overalls, you okay?" he said, eyes scanning for the energetic mechanic. Ellis was unmoving on the ground, Nick reaching down for him, having to strain a bit to lift the heavy infected's body off the younger man. " Hey, overalls, no sleeping here." he said somewhat urgently, trying not to entertain the idea of leaving Ellis behind. Ellis's mechanic skills were a big help, not to mention an extra gun arm to help, along with possible meat shield in case of Tank attack. Ellis stirred with a pained groan, one hand on his head. " Ahh..." he whined softly.

Nick grabbed his free hand. " Come on, we can get that doctor guy to look at you when he catches up." he said, helping Ellis to his feet. " Damn, you're all fucked up." he commented when Ellis meekly nodded, staggering around. He helped Ellis along, grumbling about how Ellis was always getting himself into insane amounts of trouble. "Damn stupid hick, always managing to get himself into the stupidest of shit, can't even give us a fucking break for one damned second!" he complained, merely for the sake of it, since his nerves were shot trying to keep the both of them safe for the moment. Instincts were telling him to just abandon Ellis, to cut his losses, but the thought of losing a valuable gun hand- not to mention what Rochelle and Coach would do to him if they found out- won out over his instincts.

Ellis made a noise, lifting his head to look at Nick, who helped him into the safehouse, Sion helping Chad to into the safehouse as well. Ark headed towards them, Rochelle and Coach ahead of him , going inside the safehouse. " Oh my god, that was one hell of a rush." Rochelle said, collapsing against the side of the wall, Sion and Ark securely bolting the door. " I don't ever want to do that again." A collective groan rose up in agreement.

Chad bit his lip as he pulled the fabric away from his burned leg. " Shit, that hurts. I can't imagine if it had taken any longer to get it off..." he ground his teeth, reaching for his bag to get some burn medicine.

" Hey, can you look at Ellis first? Young'un ain't doin so good." Coach said, Ellis laying on the ground with one hand over his face. " Charger beat him to shit this time."

Chad nodded and pulled himself to his feet, walking over to Ellis to start to tend to him, kneeling beside him. He started checking Ellis for a concussion, grateful to find that Ellis was just stunned. " He's a bit stunned." he said, reaching to turn Ellis over. " But that needs treatment." he said, looking at the torn flesh on his side.

He stripped Ellis's shirt off him, despite his protests, and set about cleaning the wound. He used the shirt to act as a gag to keep Ellis from biting him or his tongue, using some antiseptic to start cleaning. Predictably, Ellis started to try and shy away from the burning touch, Sion coming over and holding Ellis down. After a moment or so, Ellis stopped thrashing, settling down and wincing only softly as Chad worked.

" It's not so deep... but you'll be sleeping on your uninjured side." Chad said finally. " And make sure you keep it clean." he said, Ellis spitting out his shirt.

Rochelle picked up the garment, giving Ellis a soft smile. " I'll see if I can repair it, I think I still have some needle and thread on me." she sat down across from them and started going through her equipment, Nick leaning against the wall, slowly sliding out of his suit jacket to look at his wound, satisfied to find that it wasn't open in anyway, just a bit pulled. With a sigh, he slid it back on, closing it and sitting against the wall, falling silent while clearly ignoring everyone in the room.

Coach looked at everyone, crossing his arms. " Alright, ya'll. We're gonna have to camp here for the night." When he received a dark expression from Nick, he returned it in full. " Ain't got no choice. You got some sleep, we didn't." Nick's expression remained dark, but he nodded his head in understanding, if only grudgingly.

* * *

Ark looked around while everyone talked with one another. There simply wasn't enough room for all of them to sleep, and it was cramped just standing around. " Sion and I... patrol?" He asked Chad, who nodded slowly, gazing at the door. Coach looked up at them, his eyes full of disbelief at what Ark had just said. " Hang on there you two, it's not safe to "patrol" around. Infected crawl through this area like you wouldn't believe!"

Chad looked at Coach, smiling. " Ark and Sion will be fine, they've done this before."

Coach looked apprehensive. " But I don't wan' to be responsible for anyone passin away because they found some trouble."

Sion gave Coach a warm smile. " Here, hang on to these for me. I'll be sure to come back for them." he said, handing over his dogtags. Chad looked a bit surprised, but nodded. " It's okay, I will come back for them." he reassured Chad before going out the safehouse door.

Ark nodded slowly and left through the safehouse door as well, sitting in the tunnel of love. His eyes took a moment to adjust to the dim light, the room becoming clear to him after a few seconds. Sion took a moment to adjust as well, looking at Ark, settling behind him. " So, we're sleeping outside tonight, huh?" he said softly.

Ark nodded, stretching out one leg. " _We don't have a choice, do we? We're the infected, we can get by."_

Sion was rotating his shoulder, hearing it pop. " _Yeah, yeah. Still sucks, but they need to rest more then we do. But hey, sometimes life is a bit unfair. At least they haven't shot at us yet."_

Ark stretched out like a cat. " _It's hard to talk like a human sometimes. It's hard to string a full sentence sometimes. Worried I'll get caught."_

Sion looked at him. " _Well, you never really were good at it. Zoey and the others could understand you, but these guys are a bit more itchy on the trigger." _Ark nodded and hung his head, a bit ashamed of himself. He had always tried to imitate a human to the best of his abilities, but speaking was a bit beyond him sometimes, especially with big words or long sentences.

Sion, of course, had a much stronger grasp of the language, but was also more at risk for being found out. But he paused to think, a smile touching his face. " _So... cockroaches?"_

Ark shot him a nasty glare. " _Come off it. I'm not afraid of them, they just creep me out."_

Sion chuckled. "_And how did that happen?"_

Ark groaned at the memory. " _Mercy City... I was still learning how to judge leaps and I missed a ledge. I fell into a dumpster full of the things, and they crawled all over me, into my clothing, nowhere was left untouched." _He shuddered, hugging himself tightly.

Sion made a noise. " That would do it..."Ark continued to shiver in place, the Smoker looking out at the darkened tunnel. " So, what do you think of the new survivors?" he asked, trying to change the subject.

Ark looked at him. " _What do you want me to say? Coach reminds me of Bill, Rochelle is an older and __quieter Zoey, Ellis is a class of his own, and Nick is... well, he's Nick._"

Sion laughed at that. " I bet him and Francis would only agree to disagree with each other. Nick is such a polar opposite of everyone here." Ark nodded in agreement again, looking out at the tunnel. " Any idea what time it is?" the Hunter asked randomly.

" We've been out here for fifteen minutes, Ark." Sion said.

" It's gonna be a long night." Ark sighed.

* * *

" So, how long have you been on the road?" Coach asked, speaking quietly while Nick and Ellis slept, turning his head to look at Chad. " I mean, ya'll look road-weary." He was sitting beside Rochelle, who was curled up into a little ball while sleeping, a blanket on her shoulders and her bag of supplies as a pillow.

Chad lifted his head. " Yeah, I've been traveling for... about a while now... couldn't tell you how many weeks. Ark and Sion have been on the road longer than I have though... they've been at it since this whole thing broke out." he picked at his nails. " Those two are fighters... they don't back down easily."

Coach nodded. " They look it." he said, giving the doctor a smile. " So, what made you decide to be a traveling doctor? Instead of stayin in one of them evac's and helping those who come in?"

Chad bit his lip, looking away. " Well, things happened at my old evac... and I didn't like the way they did things, so I left with Ark, Sion and a few others. I also figured my talents would be more useful out here. Let's face it, if Ellis had received serious injuries, he would probably never make it to an evac to receive proper treatment. Not with how frantic some of the rescues tend to be from what I heard. Many survivors never make it to rescue, even at perfect health."

Coach nodded, suddenly feeling down. " We were at a mall tryin' to get out, like everyone else, but CEDA packed up and left. We had to use a race car that was there to get out. Ask Ellis 'bout it, and he'll tell you the whole story. We came out here, hopin that someone still makin rescues out here."

Chad patted Coach's shoulder after hearing the tale, worried that Coach's high spirits would disappear. " Now now, don't let what I said get you down. If there's rescue out there, you'll find it. Ark and Sion would be more than happy to lend help in finding it."

Coach chuckled. " They veterans of this, ain't they?"

Chad shrugged one shoulder. " In a way... they're kinda used to fighting in very small numbers against large odds."

Coach nodded, stifling a yawn. " Well, doc, I'm goin' to sleep now. Can I count on you to watch the door?"

Chad nodded, lifting his gun. " No one's getting in here tonight. Sleep well."

Coach soon drifted off to sleep, a thin blanket wrapped around his body, curled up in a corner of the room. Chad made sure everyone was asleep before walking to the door. " Hey, Sion? Ark? How are you two doing out there?" he asked.

" Miserable." Sion replied dryly. " This ride was designed to give people the heebie-jeebies. How are the others?"

Chad shook his head. " All sleeping now. They really needed the break."

Sion came to the barred door. " Yeah, they looked exhausted. Wonder why there isn't a stronger sense of... what's the word, unity among them?"

Chad crossed his arms. " The infection took longer to reach the south, Sion. These guys were probably from an area that just got hit by the infection, seeing as how there was still evacuations within the city. Not much time to bond. My bet is they're all deathly, no pun intended, afraid of someone in the group turning or leaving them out to dry. It's a shaky alliance for now."

Sion nodded, sighing again. " It's gonna be hard to earn trust in this group. Coach seems kind enough, but he's still wary. Not that I can blame them."

Chad looked annoyed. " Wary yes, but if we're going to stay with these guys until the next evac, you guys are going to have to earn their trust in more ways than one. Being a good shot in battle is one thing, but convincing them that even though you're infected, you're not gonna eat or kill them is another."

Ark looked at Chad, finally getting into the conversation. " Is hard, you know. Zoey and others not trust me for days. These may shoot first."

Chad shrugged. " We don't know that. The important thing is to gain trust first. If I didn't trust you, I would have shot you myself. But I know that you guys can protect me and the others with your abilities. Speaking of talents... I miss them."

Sion looked at Chad. " Who, Zane and Zephyr?"

Chad nodded. " Yeah. The little guy was starting to grow on me, and Zephyr... she was always someone to talk to at anytime. Wonder how they're doing."

Ark scratched his ears. " Probably mad at us for leaving without them."

Sion laughed softly. " Probably... but it would have been even harder to hide them than us..."

Chad finally just shrugged and let out a soft sigh. " What's done is done. Maybe we'll see them again, but hopefully in a safe environment. I don't want to have to do anything like the rescue operation from the base... that was a nightmare."

Sion shivered at the thoughts and memories. " I don't ever want to be a lab rat again."

Chad smiled through the bars. " Don't worry, if I have anything to say about it, it'll never happen again."

Ark and Sion both gave Chad a smile before returning to the tunnel, settling down to sleep themselves, the doctor turning back to the group and sitting with his back to the wall, taking out his journal. In it was sketches of Ark and the other infected he had met, and intricate details of their abilities and talents. He had several pages worth of information, and was always writing new details and facts, sighing as he wrote in his log for the day. It was a bit of an annoying task, really, but he liked to keep notes on everything that happened. It helped him to keep his mind clear of everything that could possibly weigh it down.

If anyone asked though, it wasn't a diary, it was a science journal.

Biting his lip, he started to jot down the notes of the day, including his opinions and beliefs of the new survivors, and his fears about what lay ahead. Coach and Rochelle, not to mention Ellis were all friendly, but wary. It was nice to meet some smiling faces, but he knew he would have a hard time dealing with trying to keep them from shooting Ark and Sion if they found out.

And then there was Nick...

He saw Nick as the biggest obstacle. Always skeptical of every little plan they had, finding the biggest flaws in them or making up some. He wasn't afraid to bring attention to the elephant in the room so to speak. Ark and Sion's infection would probably spur the conman into taking action for his own safety, even if the two in question were completely harmless. Or, he would take advantage of them and use them as meat shields. He didn't really know Nick well yet, he doubted anyone there would be able to tell him more besides " he's a grouch," among other things.

Sighing, he closed his notebook with a snap, pulling a blanket over himself, unaware of the green eyes staring at him before they closed as well.

* * *

End Chapter 29

Wow, I had this one typed out for the longest time, but never posted it. Kind of a slow scene, but let's face it; in real life, you couldn't just wrap up a wound and have it heal with 8 seconds, not to mention spend only a few hours in a safehouse and be able to sprint and fight at full power. Plus it makes for good conversation time.

Anyways, hope ya enjoyed, reviews are loved and appreciated. Hopefully the next chapter involves one of the five most hated parts of dark carnival, the roller coaster of hell.

Ciao~


	30. Ask

Chapter 30: Ask

Disclaimer: I do not own left 4 dead 2

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Reading is wonderful, reviews are appreciated and noted~

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The next morning was filled with zombies of many kinds, specifically the late-rising kind. Rochelle was an early riser, but that couldn't be said of everyone else. Coach finally stumbled into the land of the living around an hour after she had, but Nick and Ellis couldn't be roused for any good reason. Chad just wasn't a morning person, and he was more than happy to share his opinions with others, though it wasn't in any form of english.

Eventually though, all of them were up and getting ready to go. Ellis seemed eager to go, but his sunny mood took a small hit the second they stepped outside. " Man it's dark..." he commented.

Coach was in complete agreement. " I have some posters that would look good in this light."

" What light?" Nick added. " I can't see for crap in here."

" All the more reason to stick REALLY CLOSE." Ellis said, nodding his head knowingly.

Nick wrinkled his nose. " We are in the tunnel of love. Please clarify what you mean by "close," for my sake."

Ellis made a face. " The hell, Nick. Some crazy girls are inta that kinda stuff, and they like writtin it on the walls or on paper or somethin, but I ain't inta that."

"Hey, everyone ready?" Sion said, coming up behind Ellis, who promptly swung his tire iron at him. " Yikes!"

Ellis puffed up. " C'mon, man! Don't do things like that, okay?" he straightened his hat out as Sion made apologetic sounds, backing down.

* * *

Ark soon came trotting up to them, fixing his sleep tousled hair. He then turned and gestured down to the tunnel. " It's blocked about halfway in..." he said, having scouted the place out. He couldn't really perform cleanup, since there were so many infected in the place.

He wondered if it had been sunny when the infection hit, because for some damned reason, there were a lot of infected down there. From experience, Ark had always seen infected hiding in dark places sometimes, it seemed to be relaxing for some of them. That or it was just cooler in there. Stil there wasn't time to think on that, it was time to go. Coach led the way, his eyes taking some time to adjust to the poor light.

Ellis then decided to break the silence. " Ya know, the last time Keith and I went to a bookstore-"

" Good lord he can read." Nick interrupted, Rochelle giving him a death glare. Ellis however, continued unfazed. " Keith and I found a book that's not meant for kids, but it looked like one, and there were a buncha little boys gathered all around it, and then the saleslady came by, and she scolded Keith for givin the book to them, even though he didn't and he tried ta tell her-"

Coach looked at Ellis. " Son, this'll have to wait until we're out of this tunnel." Ellis's goofy grin never went away, and he and Ark went down the tunnel, Sion following them. Strangely, Nick followed right after them. Coach, Rochelle, and Chad hung back a bit, searching the tunnel for items, Chad having a few comments to make about that.

" Who leaves this in a tunnel of love?" he commented, holding a bile jar, his nose wrinkling. He tucked it away in his bag, Rochelle finding a bottle of pills stashed behind a wall, wondering how it got there. Coach had always wondered that as well, but he was never one to look a gift horse in the mouth. He made sure that all of their supplies was secured in his pack, slinging it back over his shoulder. "Any body but me gettin' a real bad feeling about this?" he asked softly, hearing an irate Nick around the corner.

Rochelle picked up her weapon again, swinging it around. " I've had a bad feeling since this started, Coach... isn't going to stop now." she said softly, shaking her head.

* * *

" If tha tunnel comes out where I think it's gonna come out, can we PLEASE ride it?" Ellis begged. " I ain't been on a single ride since we got here!"

" We're already on a ride, Ellis." Nick grumbled. " The longest damn tunnel of love ride in EXISTENCE. Who the hell designed this place?"

" A very lonely man." Sion answered, just as sick of the place as Nick was. Nick nodded in agreement, Ark sniffing around while remaining upright. Wasn't as accurate as having his nose lower to the ground, but it would have to do for the time being. He could smell all sorts of commons loitering around, and a few special infected here and there, but nothing too significant or dangerous. Someone out there was giving them a break and he was grateful for it.

Ellis had gotten a full night's rest and was feeling much better, and even Nick seemed to be in a better mood than when they had first met him. Both were still injured, but neither seemed to be complaining of their injuries. However, it didn't seem to stop Nick from complaining about everything else, enough to a point where Coach threatened to " pop Nick one good" if he didn't shut the hell up. Didn't seem to faze the man though.

Sion bit his lip as he looked around, faintly hearing the low chatter of the survivors, unable to ease his nerves. He felt like something horrid was around the bend, and his mind was unforgiving when it came to worst-case-scenarios. Several things could happen really. One of the new survivors could wind up horribly injured to the point where they would die from their injuries, someone could get lost and then die, their secret could be discovered... shaking his head he lifted his gun to keep walking.

His fears tormented him as they walked along, the poor smoker looking bedraggled after a while, and they had barely encountered anything bigger than a common. " Sion, are you okay?" Chad asked, concerned for the Smoker's health. Ever since his stay at the lab, Chad had made sure to monitor his infected companion's health very closely, to make sure that no irregularities popped up when they least expected it.

" I'm fine... just scared." Sion said, answering truthfully. " We are so lost here, and I have no idea what's going to happen next." he wiped his sweaty palms on his pants, bringing them back up to clutch his gun. " The future doesn't look bright for anyone of us."

Chad was thankful that they were at the back of the group to where they couldn't be heard. " No one knows what the future holds. That's why everyone lives the day to the fullest now, because tomorrow is promised to no one." he said. Chad then stiffened as he felt someone's eyes upon him, looking around with a startled glance. Looking up, he saw Nick looking back at him, his green eyes narrowed dangerously. Chad gulped nervously, Nick's eyes narrowing a bit more before he looked back at the others as if nothing had happened. Sion was wide eyed, frozen in place somewhat. Where had he seen that kind of gaze before? It unnerved him, and the fact that it was someone who at the moment didn't trust anyone further unnerved him. Trying to figure out what Nick was thinking or feeling sometimes felt like thrusting one's hands into a pit of vipers. The only end result is getting bitten.

Nick's gaze lingered on Ark as well, before he looked back at Chad. " Hey. Let's split up." he said in a tone that didn't leave much room for objection. " Coach, take Ro' and Ellis and check up ahead, I'll take these guys and look through the maintenance room." he said. Coach gave him a look, one that said he didn't like Nick's idea, but the man looked back at Coach. " It's okay. I got this." he said.

Coach finally gave in, letting the group split up. " Remain close by though." he warned. Nick nodded, turning his gaze to the others. " Let's go, shall we?" he said. " Gotta check out the swan maintenance room of love." he said in a darkly humorous tone.

Sion looked scared and nervous as he herded Ark behind Chad, following him into the maintenance room. Once they were a small distance away from the group, Nick turned back to look at them. " Who are you? And don't give me any bullshit." his tone clearly left no room for argument of any kind.

Chad faltered. " Ah... well, I came from the evac center about-"

Nick silenced him with a single finger. " Not you. Them." he hissed, pointing at Ark and Sion.

* * *

Ark let out a noise that could be considered a yelp, taking shelter behind Sion, who was trying to look as small as possible. Sion's chocolate eyes met Nick's green ones, and instantly shrunk under the conman's fierce gaze. Not that Ark could blame him though, they were putting the entire team at risk by traveling with them. Who knew if this group of survivors were immune to the sickness? Nick may not have been the leader of the group, but he was still looking out for his own health.

Sion's eyes flickered nervously, the Smoker trying to figure out what to do, sincerely worried. Nick looked as if he was about to shoot them before even waiting for an answer. " We're searching for a place to live... a reason to live."he finally said. " We're infected, but we don't have a place to go... we have nothing. I don't want to spend the rest of my life in a laboratory somewhere, I want to be cured... and start over. If I have to travel until I can get a cure, then so be it. I'm tired of living my life scared of when and how it will end."

Nick seemed to have fallen silent, unable to respond, or still trying to think of a response. Ark then spoke up in his own broken voice, the conman turning to look at him. " Remember song... felt familiar. Wanted to come out here, and see if could find memories connected to song."

" What song?" Nick softly asked.

" Cat's in the Cradle." Chad said. " Ark told it to me one night. It's a crapshoot, but it's all he's got."

Nick seemed to contemplate everything he had seen and heard for the last few hours. He did owe Chad for patching him back up, but he had no sympathies towards the infected... but Ark and Sion did count as extra gun hands and meat shields. It wasn't worth the risk, but still, if he could make use of them, he would be better off...

" Before I make any decisions... tell me everything." he finally said. He was going to take a page out of Coach's book this time... weigh all the options before making his decision. It still didn't change his opinion that all infected had to be shot, but at least he would have a better grasp of what's going on.

Ark finally began, clearing his throat and trying to use the best english he could. " It all began in mercy city..." he started, taking his time with explaining.

Nick's expression changed little during the whole tale, save for blinking and looking between the group. Ark had begun first, with Sion taking over in the middle, and then Chad had taken over for both of them at the end, and all three was gazing at the conman with different expressions. Nick's practiced eye quickly and mercilessly picked each facial feature apart down to the frame.

Ark was young... maybe about Ellis's... no, even younger, but not by much. He looked as if he was a fresh face, just entering college to try and make something of himself in the world, but the virus had said otherwise. What a horrible fate, but such was the hand life had given him. And now he was out here, chasing memory fragments connected to a song he could barely remember? Nick pegged him for a dim but determined fool.

Sion's eyes held much more intelligence, as well as age. He reminded Nick of himself, a slightly detached look in his eyes as he gazed at Nick. Nick knew the glance, the gaze of someone sizing him up. Was he a threat? Of course. He had thrown a monkey wrench into the infected's plans, and he could either be eliminated, or they would have to leave before he shot them. His hand involuntarily tightened around the trigger of his magnum, Ark and Sion visibly flinching.

Nick set his jaw before looking at them individually, his mind currently trying to level the playing field for a decision. His hand twitched slightly, the infected pair flinching everytime he moved. Ark and Sion were infected, but what were they? Irrelevant. They were still infected, and all infected could only be cured by a bullet to the head. Sion spoke of eventually finding a cure... but how long would something like that take? Even if it wasn't the best of lives, Nick wanted his back, because swindling some gullible sap and then enjoying his finer pleasures afterwards was a hell of a lot better than sleeping in broken intervals and running like a bunch of rats caught in a maze. Every sign they followed, the path laid out for them to struggle along to reach a already failed once rescue, he was getting sick of led around like a show-pony.

Not to mention the injuries. Sure, his lifestyle had earned him a few scars and bruises, but never this kind of punishment. At the hotel, during their first Tank attack, he had gotten punched by the hulking beast. Well, to be more accurate, he got hit by the chair that the massive infected had punched out of the way to get at them. But still there was the remnants of a large bruise on his leg from the hit. It had made walking next to impossible for the first few minutes before adrenaline kicked in, and even now it still hurt once in a while. And then his shoulder still hurt from the pain of getting it torn open by that Hunter, but it was still useable thank god. Still, he was getting tired of the lack of sleep, food, and a uninjured body.

He lifted the gun to point at the two, his eyes narrowed. Ark flinched again, but Sion looked him in the eyes, not flinching away from his gaze. " If you can't deal with us, fine... but at least let us leave in one piece." Sion said firmly. " That's all I ask."

Nick's eyes widened slightly before they narrowed again, this time his finger tightening on the trigger. His mind was at war, and yet strangely clear. " What can you guys do?" he asked. " What are you?"

" Smoker... and Hunter." Sion said, gesturing to himself and Ark.

Nick seemed to contemplate it, making a soft noise. " I'll think on it... and make my decision in five minutes."

Sion tilted his head. " We can live with that... right, Ark?"

Ark nodded. He felt like he was being shortchanged by all of this, but Nick was wary, and only thinking in his best long as he felt threatened, Sion and Ark had no chance of establishing that they were not going to bite him as soon as he let his guard down. Ark let out a soft sigh, looking downcast. Things were not looking up. He felt like running away as soon as Nick turned to think, but loud screams from down the hallway caught their attention.

" What the hell IS that THING?"

" Who cares what it is, RUN!"

Nick turned as he heard the voices of his companions, his eyes widening as Coach and Ellis ran past him, a large infected covered in spines roaring madly and chasing after them. " What the hell is that?"

Chad grimaced. " Damn, we got a Shooter! Spread out, don't let those spines touch you!" he barked, Sion and Ark leaping into action. Ellis managed to turn around to fight as well, Coach having to catch his breath behind the fighters as Chad reached into his bag and pulled out the bile bomb, lobbing it at the mutated beast. The jar shattered on it's spines and it screeched, trying to get the vile liquid off of it as common infected began to pour out of the vents to attack it, the group falling back further into the tunnel.

" What. The. Hell. Was. That." Nick hissed at Chad, catching his breath.

" That is a infected from our area... we call it a "Shooter" because it can detach those spines on it's body." Chad said. " It's normally an ambush-type infected... someone must have startled it."

Coach raised his hand. " Sorry... I scared it. I was shining my flashlight on the wreckage, and he was sleepin' nearby and woke up."

" I feel like I'm forgettin' something..." Ellis said randomly, everyone ignoring him in favor of listening to Chad.

" That bile jar will buy us a bit of time, let's go into the maintenance room while it's busy and then get the heck out of here." he said, Sion and Ark both agreeing, Ark shrinking as Nick gave them both a searing gaze.

" Where's Ro?" Ellis finally said, his mind catching back up with him.

Everyone looked back down the tunnel. " Aw shit!"

Coach immediately took off back down the tunnel, Ellis following close behind. " Hang on Ro, we're coming!" he called, Chad running after them. Sion bolted after them as well, but Nick caught Ark's shoulder.

" What? Have to save her!" He squawked, Nick's gaze scathing.

" Find her with your nose." Nick said.

" Come again?" Ark was left dumbfounded.

" I'm not explaining myself again! I don't trust either of you, but your nose can find her more accurately than we can! You Hunters are built for that, right? So get to it, damnit!" Nick barked, his tone startling Ark. He sensed that Nick seemed almost... hesitant. Asking for help clearly wasn't his thing, but he was forced to bow his head somewhat to someone he didn't trust... all for the sake of saving someone he possibly did trust. Ark heard the thundering footfalls of the others running to Rochelle's rescue, and he took a deep breath, letting all of the scents hit him.

" Ok. This way." he said, running towards a different area of the maintenance room.

Nick nodded and silently followed.

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Well... I guess I should write a decent author's note for anyone who's made it this far. Today, on september 19th, I have reached 20 years of age. I celebrate it by releasing my 30th chapter. I've come a long way... from a small high school girl who had a grasp of literature and an idea, to what I am today. It's been a rough road. I've had trolls, harsh critiques, and even lost a few readers due to lack of interest or some other things... but I wonder what they would think of me today.

I've really enjoyed writing this project, and I hope to continue all the way to the end. Thank you for reading this current chapter~

Ciao~


	31. Rides

Chapter 31: Rides

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead 2

Well now, hit a bit of a snag with this one, mainly because I promised drama on the coaster... hopefully I made the quota. Don't hurt me if I didn't.

* * *

Stressed couldn't even begin to describe the situation, Ark sniffing furiously to follow Rochelle's scent. Nick was following him like a hawk, his gun trained on every little thing, including the Hunter. The tension was stifling, and Ark longed for older times, when he could freely seek scents without someone following him through a scope. If he even dared to stray for a moment, he was screwed. He was far from straying though, Rochelle's scent seemed to be getting further and further. There was also another scent mingled in there, and he was worried. It seemed to be following her.

" Hurry!" he said, picking up the pace. Nick lifted his head and heard the sound of gunfire, also hearing an annoyed bray of the Shooter. " They had better be okay..." he hissed.

Ark gave him a look. " They be fine. Chad and Sion fight Shooter before. Know what to do."

Nick snorted. " It's not them I'm concerned about."

Ark nodded again. " This way." coiling his legs, he leapt to the nearby railing, springing off it to the opposite railing, swinging himself up and onto the catwalk.

" And since when do regular humans jump around like that?" Nick snapped.

Ark had to mentally slap himself. In the old days, the others would find their own routes, or he would be leaping to lower something to help them reach where he was. Groaning, he looked around and found a bent pipe. " Reach that?" he asked, Nick giving him an incredulous look. " The hell makes you think I can jump that high?" he retorted.

Ark ground his teeth, resisting the urge to call him a whiny brat, stepping on the pipe and bending it to where Nick could reach it easier. The con-artist leaned back slightly and took a bit of a leap, grabbing onto the pipe after tossing his magnum onto the catwalk with a well-aimed throw. "Hurry, hurry, hurry, hurry..." Ark hissed, bouncing in place, becoming impatient every second the scent inched away from him. When Nick finally scrambled onto the catwalk, Ark waited all but two seconds before bolting after the scent.

Nick snatched his gun up from the ground and ran after Ark, his heart pounding fiercely as he struggled to keep the fast moving Hunter in sight. Ark hissed as he leapt through a open door, pausing to sniff the air before scampered down a hallway.

" Damn... how far did she get?" Nick breathed, coughing slightly as Ark froze in front of the door, growling softly. " Is she there?"

Ark nodded. " She is... and someone else." he didn't recognize the scent, and it unnerved him, seeing as how the other person's scent was extremely close. Fearing the worse, Nick slid the door open slightly, aiming his gun around the room. His eye fell upon a dark haired man, and Rochelle resting on a spread out blanket, her shirt dyed red. " Bastard." he hissed, keeping his eye and gun trained on the man. His hair was long, pulled back into a crude ponytail, strands falling over his face as he stood up, brown eyes blinking at the conman. " How rude." the man commented, having to look down somewhat, since he was of a comparable height. Ark mentally swore at the fact that everyone seemed to be taller than him.

The man looked young, but his eyes held one long story, Ark feeling as if this man had encountered life in one of it's worse moods. He snapped out of it as Nick cocked his gun, the sound harsh. " What the hell did you do to her?" he hissed.

" I bandaged her wounds. That is all." The man replied. " You are getting ahead of yourself in your assumptions." Ark was reminded of their stranger that appeared back when he was with Zoey and the others, but there was still significant differences. " She is unharmed, and I have no problem with releasing her to you." the man finished, Nick's eyes narrowing and his hand tightening on the trigger.

" You're a bit too kind, even for a passing survivor." Nick said, clearly wary. " What's your name? How did you get here?" It was too nice in his mind. Nearly everyone was desperate to escape, so why take the time to tend to an injured person? Unless of course he wanted something.

" Ethan. My name is Ethan." the man said. " I'm traveling to the next encampment, same as everyone else."

Nick clearly wasn't buying whatever this man was saying. " Like hell. You're alone. Practically no one can do it alone, that's why I'm still with these guys." he said, Ark giving an offended but amused look. Ethan looked amused as well, tilting his head to the side slightly.

" Well, I am not completely alone." he said, gesturing to the next room over. " But I do have to move very slowly, for the sake of my crew."Inside the room was a woman and three small children about Zane's age, all of them huddled beside the woman. " My wife, Mary. As well as my three children, Jade, Stephan, and Lance." All three children were terrified of the arrivals, all clinging to their mother, who was whispering soft words to them and trying to keep them calm, her own eyes trained on the group.

" You're traveling with your family..." Nick said, his eyes holding an unreadable expression.

* * *

Nick's gaze couldn't be considered jealousy or hate, but it reminded Ark of a more...grudgingly respectful glance. Ethan was doing everything he could to keep his family safe, even in such bleak times. Smiling at the children, Ark waved to them, the little ones still clinging to their mother, the woman giving Ark a soft nod of her head. He smiled goofily at her, despite being barely able to see her, turning to look at Rochelle, who was starting to wake up. Rochelle glanced around before wincing as she felt the bandages on her arm and leg. " Ooo... that hurt." she commented.

Nick chuckled darkly. " Hey, at least you didn't catch the flu."

Rochelle rolled her eyes. " Yay me." she got to her feet with a groan, testing out whether or not she could walk. Though she had a slight limp, she could move, giving a relieved sigh. " I'm not out of the running yet!" she said cheerfully.

" Yeah, but can you run?" Nick asked, raising an eyebrow.

" Way to spoil the mood, Nick." she said, her shoulders sagging slightly. Ark sat and watched the exchange, his blue eyes shifting back and forth between them. Ethan was also watching the display, lifting his head as footsteps approached, the others all arriving, Ellis practically flinging himself onto Rochelle.

" Ah'm so sawwry!" he bawled, his accent thick from apparent fear and grief.

Rochelle gently petted his head. "It's all right, Ellis. I'm safe, we're all safe. No need to keep hitting yourself more than necessary." she soothed, Sion returning to Ark's side, both leaning against the wall, out of the conversation. Nick continued to glare at the two, but right now wasn't the time to be passing judgement on anyone, it would have to wait for the moment. Chad and Coach caught up a minute later, both stopping to catch their breath, Ethan bowing his head to them as well. " So, uh, who is this guy?" Ellis asked, stopping to give Ethan a good once over with his eyes, the mechanic full of questions.

" Name's Ethan." Ethan said softly. " I'm traveling with my family."

Ellis looked into the doorway and saw Mary and the children huddled inside. " Wow, she's..." his mouth hung open when she came out, the small children clinging to her side. " Gorgeous..." With long blonde hair comparable to gold, delicately painted red lips and ice-blue eyes, Mary was definitely something to look at. Her choice of tight-fitting clothing also left little to the imagination, shapely curves unmarred by the world around them had several men in the room drooling, a few jealous of Ethan.

" Please close your mouths before I drown in the next great lake." Mary said softly with a smirk, her children all skittering over to Ethan, who lifted one into his arms. Each of the kids looked like one of the two, and all of them were staring at the group with inquisitive eyes. Rochelle simply rolled her eyes at the group. " Men."

"_Pretty..." _Ark said softly under his breath, Sion chuckling softly.

"_You're infected, remember? Down, boy." _The smoker said just as quietly, amused.

" _I've got looking privileges, don't I?" _Ark retorted, stifling a gasp when Nick turned a single eye onto the both of them. True, Nick was giving Mary some less than savory looks as well, but the presence of children seemed to be a turnoff for him. Not to mention Ethan might pound him into a well-dressed paste for attempting anything.

* * *

" So, where are you guys headed?" Coach asked them once all of the men had more or less snapped to reality, Ethan turning to look at him. " We're headed further south." he replied, pointing which direction he intended to go. " There are several evac centers to go to, it's just a matter of which ones you pick. I'm hoping to find one in my old hometown."

" I don't know if there'll be one for you, but best of luck to you." Coach said. " Thank you for carin' for Rochelle." Nick half expected Coach to extend an invitation to them to travel as one huge group, the soft hearted man, but Coach knew full well that such a large group would be hard to manage. There was no law that said he couldn't offer up a few prayers for that family to make it to safety though. The ex-football player smiled warmly at the family once more. " Well, I guess we should part ways quickly, but I do have somethin to ask ya. How do you plan to get out of here?"

Ethan gestured towards where the group had come from. " We're going out of the entrance. We came through the stadium, but I don't want to risk something that dangerous with my family here. You guys could do it though, since you all have weapons. Get to the stadium, and you can signal a helicopter out of there. I'm sure there's still a few flying around, we saw one when we passed through there."

" You're not gonna come with us?" Ellis asked. " I mean, it's safer for everyone to travel together, right?"

Ethan gave Ellis a soft smile. " I know full well that no one is going to watch three children in the heat of battle, so I must decline. I want to keep them safe, so slow and steady will be just fine. I thank you for all of your concerns though."

Ellis scratched his head. " Gee, thanks, Mr. Ethan. Ya know, you talk like how most of the tourists did when they used to visit me and Keith's shop." he said, feeling a lot like a child talking to a new teacher.

" That's a little something called proper English and literacy." Nick said, rolling his eyes.

Rochelle and Coach both wanted to hit Nick for what he said, Ethan making a sound. " Yes, well, we had best be on our way." Mary said swiftly, urging Ethan out the door before he could comment. All of the children followed her quickly, the smallest one, Lance, waving goodbye to everyone before the family left. Ark lifted his head as Ellis waved to the departing family.

" All right people. We got a plan, let's get it in motion." Coach said.

" A stupid plan." Nick grumbled, but no one paid him any mind, too set on getting out of there. The only one who was neutral about all of it was Sion, who was quietly contemplating things. Nick knew of their secret, he wouldn't allow them to board the helicopter with everyone else. He'd shoot them right where they stood if it wasn't for the fact that he would have to explain himself to the others. On the other hand, the rest of the group saw him and Ark as comrades with a united goal... if they were to quietly leave the group in the dark of the night or something, the group might stubbornly look for them and miss the chance for safety.

Sighing, he continued on, as the group slowly made their way to a large fenced area, Ellis the first one to break the silence. " I hope Ethan and his family get out okay..." he said softly.

" I think they'll be fine..." Rochelle said, trying to cheer Ellis up. " We cleared out nearly all the infected on the way in, remember? I'm sure he and his wife can take a few..."

" I don't even recall if he had a weapon." Nick said, Ellis looking a bit upset at him. Coach shot Nick a look as well, and pressed on. " I'm sure they'll be fine. I got a feeling in my gut." he said.

" That's called hunger." Nick shot back.

Chad ignored them all, looking up at the fence. " What's behind this fence?" he asked. Ellis looked up for a brief second, his eyes lighting up. " IT'S THE SCREAMING OAK!" he squealed, dashing for the hole that had been knocked in the fence. " I LOVE this ride!"

Nick looked up at the ride as well. " 'Screaming' certainly suits the situation right now..." he said, following everyone through the fence. Ellis was hopping up and down in place, begging to ride it at least once before they had to leave, Coach evaluating the situation while Rochelle worked to calm Ellis down.

" We're gonna have to start it... this fence looks too dangerous to climb." he finally said said, Ark turning to look at the fence. It looked like an ordinary fence to him, and he was about to say so when Sion spoke for him. " Ever climbed a fence with a Tank on your ass?" he said simply, Ark biting his lip. The Smoker had a point with that one, it would be suicide to get caught climbing fences with a Tank chasing him. The Tank could go through it, but he would have to find a way over or around it. Looking back, he saw the group gathering their supplies before walking over to where Chad was, the man evaluating the area. " What's wrong?"

Chad bit his lip. " It's everyone's injuries... I know they all are helping each other along in their own right, but some of those injuries take time to heal. Nick's shoulder wound for example... he should be properly resting it and not trying to strain his arm. Ellis's injury as well, they should both be near the middle... but since..." he lowered his voice to where only Ark could hear. " Since you two can't fight like how we did with the others... we're limited." he sighed deeply, shaking his head as the ride roared to life, Ellis pulling the switch. " We'll just have to do what we can."

" This is the best day of my life!" the mechanic cheered, running after the rollercoaster car, Rochelle hobbling along with Coach's help. Nick couldn't help but inwardly groan at Ellis, hurrying along. Ark and Sion were left behind with Chad, the soldier sighing quietly. " Let's go...we don't have much choice." he said, hurrying after the others.

Ark nodded and crouched, judging his distance before leaping, catching a brief glimpse of the group as he passed them by, making sure not to be seen. Grabbing onto the rail, he swung himself over and punched an infected in the face, trying to catch up with the group quickly. Rochelle had taken up shelter behind Ellis, who had taken her axe and was swinging it like a pro, tearing a path through the crowd. Nick and Chad were further ahead, trying to shut off the coaster. Ark didn't like how the group was stretched every which way, it was just begging for an accident to occur.

Without warning, the horde seemed to intensify, clambering up the side of the rollercoaster to try and get at the struggling survivors. The horde's cry also seemed to be magnified, the roars drowning out any cries the survivors may have made. Ark let out a scared noise, worried that someone would take serious damage in that scuffle, scrambling to reach them. He failed to see the hand reaching for his leg, getting yanked off the rollercoaster with a yelp, landing gracefully despite the sudden surprise. Growling, he turned to face the infected that dared to pull him under, receiving a sharp blow to the back of the head, tumbling to the ground. Once he was on the ground, whoever had hit him dealt him another blow, this time to his ribcage, a sharp gasp escaping his lips.

Whining, he wasn't able to do much as his leg was grabbed forcefully, the Hunter being slowly dragged along after his hands were bound with rope. His head spun into darkness as a cold yet cocky voice reached his ears, leaving him with a deep chill before everything went dark.

" 'Bout time I caught the kid... now time to get the father..."

* * *

" If someone had told me a week ago that I would be running a rollercoaster track in a hillbilly area after traversing the longest damn tunnel of love ride in a zombie apocalypse... I would have said they were on some drugs that should be illegal worldwide." Nick grunted, reloading his gun.

" Preaching to the choir." Chad said, glumly agreeing. " Military training never covers anything you actually need."

" You're an active soldier? You don't look it at all, what with the medical bag and...air-headed attitude." Nick said, raising an eyebrow as he shot an infected in the head. " I half expected the first soldier we came across would be ordering us around and telling us to safely evacuate somewhere to be quarantined."

" You have got to be joking." Chad said with a raised eyebrow as well. " I can barely keep my head together half the time with all this mayhem. I don't take orders or give them."

The conversation ended as the two continued hurrying to the ride, Chad dropping his gun as a Jockey leapt on him, screaming as he tried to get it off him. His eyes were being covered by the beast's clawed hands, his legs not cooperating with him in the slightest. "GET IT OFF GET IT OFF-" he shouted, swinging his weapon around, trying to hit the madly giggling creature. More often than not he missed and hit himself. Nick was somewhere nearby, but from the sound of fleeting footsteps, it seemed as if Nick left him to fend for himself and was rushing to turn the ride off.

He let out a pained yelp as he crashed into the wall of the tunnel he was in, the Jockey forcing him away from it and into another one, another yelp escaping him. This continued on for a minute before he heard a swift crack, and the Jockey fell from his face. " Thank you..." he said, breathing a sigh of relief before smiling at his savior, Sion grinning back at him. " No problem."

" I hate how they jump on you." Chad said, sighing deeply. " It almost feels like you're being ridden around like a horse, and it's hands are the reigns."

Sion shuddered, thinking back to his encounter with a Jockey. " That's... one way of putting it." he said softly. " Violations on every personal level of comfort is another."

Chad shrugged. " I hear ya. How's Ark?" he asked.

Sion shook his head. " Nervous. We both are, really. There's no telling when Nick will blow our cover and then try to execute us. He's a time bomb, and the longer he sits, the worse the explosion will be."

Chad crossed his arms, hearing the ride come to a halt, signaling the end of the infected rush. " We'll talk later." he said, hurrying along. Sion nodded and hurried after him, eyes scanning the remaining infected and picking his targets, sighing as he mentally counted his ammunition. Not a lot of ammunition remaining, but he should be able to remedy that at the safehouse. Hurrying, he caught up with Nick, who was already inside, Chad glaring at him for leaving him behind with a Jockey.

" You got rid of it, didn't you?" Nick said nonchalantly, clearly blowing off any argument Chad could have made, the soldier balling his fists as Coach and Rochelle came in, the bigger man helping her sit on the floor. Ellis was the last one in, sighing deeply and then whooping as he closed the door. " That was all right, gang!" he said proudly, Nick rolling his eyes.

Sion rolled his eyes as well, that was hardly a fun event, he had gotten bitten and clawed so many times it wasn't funny. Rather than groan loudly like Nick was, he scanned the room, taking in the sight before freezing. A certain fixture of the group was nowhere to be found, not even resting against the corner of the room.

" Where's Ark?"

* * *

End Chapter 31

Well, you didn't think you've seen the last of the affectionately dubbed " Asshole survivor" now did we? I hope I met the quota for drama, or at least got some of it out the way, the dark carnival is far from over.

In other news, I will be doing a small q&a session at the end, maybe 3-4 questions tops, I missed it as much as you guys did. I also need a slew of original yet not too exotic names to use for new characters. My ears are open, lay it on me. By the way, what would you guys think of receiving the long awaited back-story to our lovely yet currently missing Witch, Zephyr? Along with a contest of themes? Anyone interested can send me a message or leave it in their review.

As always, reviews are well liked, and I hope you enjoyed the chapter~

Ciao~


	32. Matthew

Chapter 32: Matthew

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead 2.

* * *

Ark groaned as he came to, swiftly aware of the fact that he had been bound with rope. The offending bonds tore at his skin and irritated it to no end, the Hunter grimacing before trying to tug it loose. His strength was drained and wasn't coming back any time soon, another groan escaping his lips as he struggled to get upright at least, his head still throbbing from the rough blow. His eyes finally adjusted to the dark, a small prison of concrete greeting him along with faint noises of the outside. Struggling, he managed to sit upright, fumbling slightly to be able to sit on his knees.

" Finally awake?" a voice sneered, Ark jolting his head up to glare, getting punched in the face for it. " Good, I don't want you out so soon." Ark grimaced from the stinging on his cheek, recieving a matching one on the other side, yelping again. "... hmph, punching you isn't as satisfying as I thought it would be... for all your posturing, you're a whipped dog."

Ark bared his teeth slightly, insulted. Sure, he had been playfully nicknamed the pet of the group, but to be called it by someone he didn't even know made him angry. " What want?" he snapped, the man's eyes turning onto him with a smirk on his lips. " Revenge... but that's too cliche, right?" he smirked.

Grabbing Ark's hair, the man forced him to the ground. " Revenge is really the word for it, hasn't anyone bothered to think of another...? What I really want is to slice you open, dangle your innards across a twelve foot radius, leave your head visible for all to see. Set you on fire, destroy your limbs, remove your facial features with acid. That grim enough for you?" The man chuckled darkly when he saw Ark's pale face. " But I can do all that shit, and it still won't fix what he did to me." he reached into his pocket and pulled out a switchblade, flicking it open. " The green flu... shit took everything out from under me. My job, my FAMILY." He ground Ark's head into the ground, ignoring the squeals of pain from the Hunter. " You have no idea what it's like losing a wife and several kids... all at once to one goddamn hunter..."

He cut Ark's cheek with the knife, hearing the Hunter yelp. " My world is gone, and you... you just keep prattling about, trying to act like a damned human, waiting for your moment! There is no such thing as a KIND infected! At the end of the day, you're still the same blood stained monster!" he growled and lifted Ark's head, slamming it into the ground. " Your damned father is the same way too! That bastard cut down my wife without a second thought, and then just sat there and cleaned his blood-stained claws!"

Ark whimpered, his head spinning like a washing machine on spin cycle, a groan escaping hin as the man grit his teeth. " I really hate to do this to ya, kid, but killin ya will not only cure you of the infection, but it'll help bring your dad out so I can do the same for him." He started to drag Ark by his tied up hands. " Course, it'll make it a bit easier if I drag you out for the world to see... after all, the main act is coming up next."

* * *

" Ark! Hey, Ark! Can y' hear me?" Ellis called, poking his head out the safehouse door. " Dangit, he ain't callin' back guys... I'm gonna go and look for him." he said, bounding out the door before anyone could stop him, Coach following him.

" Now hold up young'un!" he said, jogging after him. Rochelle sighed and leaned against the wall, Sion and Chad exchanging worried glances with each other as Nick watched them. " I... I'm going to go help look." Sion said, running after the two.

" Be careful!" Rochelle yelled after them all, shifting her position slightly to the left, trying to make resting on her leg a bit easier. Chad said nothing, silently going over to Rochelle's side to look at her leg, looking up at Nick. The con-artist seemed to have a neutral expression, as if waiting for Chad to speak first.

" Do you want to go look for them too?" Rochelle asked Nick, looking at him softly. " Chad can stay here with me if he wants."

" No." Nick replied sharply. " I'm not leaving this spot. Ellis can dart about all he wants, but I need rest." His clipped tone had Chad on edge, as if he knew that Nick absolutely refused to go look for an infected person. Rochelle however, perceived it as a small bit of kindness because of her injury. Sighing, Chad sat back down, gun resting on his lap. " I hope they find him..." he said softly, wind rustling his hair.

" Why can't I find him when I actually look?" Sion grumbled, tripping and falling on his hands and knees, cursing the beer bottle that had cleverly disguised itself in the dark. Wincing, he brought his hands to his mouth and lapped at the blood, spitting it out before finding a discarded medical kit and bandaging his hands, tucking the rest of the supplies away and getting to his feet upon hearing noises behind him. " Who's there?" he snapped, drawing his gun. Ark's disappearance had put him on edge, and he was fearful that whatever or whomever had kidnapped Ark was after all infected.

His tension eased when Ellis came out of the bushes, arms up. " Jus' me, Sion... man, you're awful spooky." he said playfully. " Reminds me of the time me and my buddy Keith scared the hell outta-"

" Later, Ellis." Sion sighed, shaking his head. " Have you seen any sign of Ark? I've been looking all over the rollercoaster, but I've been finding nothing."

Ellis pursed his lips slightly. " Nuthin outta tha ordinary... Coach went back to the middle of it, ya know that steep drop? He thinks Ark mighta fallen down there and knocked himself silly or somethin', and I need to catch up with him."

Sion nodded softly, giving the mechanic a smile. " Thanks, Ellis, you have no idea how much this means to me. Ark's a good friend of mine, I'd never live it down if I couldn't find him."

Ellis tipped his hat in a polite gesture before hurrying after Coach, Sion turning back to trying to find Ark by scent. He cursed the Smoker infection for dulling his sense of smell, trying instead to find him by sight, which failed rather spectacularly.

Biting his lip, he made a noise of disgust, hurrying along while calling the Hunter's name. He was now truely scared that something had happened to Ark and if he didn't find him soon, Ark would be killed. It left an uncomfortable feeling in his stomach and he shook it off, calling for him again. Grimacing, he tried to ignore the growing fear and panic, stumbling over something with a yelp.

" Oy, can't anyone get a lil' rest 'round 'ere?" an annoyed and distinctly southern voice said, the pair of legs that Sion tripped over pulling themselves under a table.

" If you didn't sleep like the dead, maybe I wouldn't trip over them... wait, what are you doing under there?" Sion exclaimed, stunned to find another living person in the amusement park.

A somewhat thin man came out from under the table, yawning as he stretched his arms out and fiddled with his long hair, pulling it back into a loose ponytail, looking at Sion with amused eyes. He stood taller than Sion, a small smile tugging at his lips as he evaluated the Smoker. " Name's Matthew, friend. What's y' name?"

Sion stuttered for a moment, taken aback by the man's friendly nature. " Oh... Sion. My name is Sion."

" See-on..." the man sounded it out for a second. " Sion, eh? S' a nice name. So, what's got y' running about like a chicken missin' it's head? Lost someone or somethin'?"

Sion nodded slowly. " I lost my friend, he went missing when we ran the rollercoaster, and now I'm trying to find him."

Matthew tilted his head. " Y' don't say. I lost someone too, but it's m' twin brother. He looks just like me, have y' seen him? Been following his trail for days, but I lost it some time ago."

Sion ran his memories through a fierce grinder, trying to match the face to another, sighing when he came up short. " No, I haven't... but there's a group of people who I'm with that might have seen him, you can ask them later... can you help me find my friend?"

Matthew seemed to mull on it for all but five minutes. " Sure! I'll help ya find 'im. We all gotta look out for one another now, so let's go find 'im!" he started looking around, sheepishly looking back at Sion. " Er... what's his name?"

" Are all people from the south like this?" Sion wondered, relaying to Matthew as to what Ark looked like.

" Oh!" Matthew exclaimed, jumping a bit eagerly. " Ya mean the little one that guy was carryin'! Yeah, I saw him a little while ago!"

Sion's breath caught in his throat. " What? What did you see?" he demanded, shaking Matthew's shoulders.

" I saw a big guy armed to the teeth carrying the little guy you were talkin' about a while ago. He headed off towards the stadium entrance, and the little guy looked like he was jus' sleeping or somethin' so I didn' think much on it." Matthew said hurriedly.

Sion made a noise. " Stadium entrance... can you tell me which way it is?" he said, trying not to sound too demanding. " He was taken by someone, and I don't want anything bad to happen to him, he saved my life a few times."

Matthew nodded. " It's back that way, just make a left at the... y' know what? Why don't I just show y' the way? It's easier than trying to remember the way without seein' landmarks." He pointed in the right direction, Sion nodding and telling him to wait there, going to get the others to come with him. Once he found Ellis and Coach, he explained the situation to them, Ellis all but ready to go, but Coach was wary.

" I know you're determined to find your friend and all, but isn't that just risky?" Coach said, scratching his head. " Someone out here in the middle of nowhere, unarmed, and just happened to see someone takin' Ark somewhere and is willing to show you the way? Sounds mighty suspicious to me, it could be a trap."

Sion wrung his hands together nervously. " I know that." he mumbled, still wanting to go. If it was a trap, the others would have to spring him again, and he would feel stupid all over again. But if it wasn't, Ark could really use some help. One thing he wasn't expecting was for Ellis to stand up for him. " Well, Coach, Sion and I are gonna go check it out, and if we don' come back within forty minutes or so, come get us, k?" he said, smiling as he gently lifted his tire iron. " If it's a trap, you can spring us and call us stupid later. If not, we'll be back real soon with Ark followin' us."

Coach nodded, turning to go back to the safehouse. " Ya'll stay safe now, ya hear? If I have to come get you, there'll be trouble." he said somewhat playfully, Ellis turning back to Sion, grinning widely.

" Now, let's meet up with that Matthew fella and go get Ark!"

* * *

Matthew waited patiently by the table Sion had found him under, the two coming back to meet them, Sion bowing slightly. " Sorry it took so long." he apologized, Ellis looking up at Matthew, who smiled back at him.

" No problem, let's go get y' friend, k? It's this way." he said, walking towards where he had seen Ark last. Ellis took the opportunity to make small talk, speaking to their new companion. " Hey, where are ya from? I mean, I ain't never seen you around here before." he asked.

" From the bayou's, in New Orleans." Matthew smiled. " Me n' my twin brother grew up there. He left to go find more work in New York, 'bout a year before the infection. When the infection broke out, I came out here to come meet him, but one of those big things got in the way. I'm gonna head on home, see if he went there, where we promised to meet later."

Ellis nodded. " Well, ya see, I come from the Savannah, and my story starts in a shop-" Sion let him ramble on, looking around. The infected were minimal, about two or three at best lounging around in some spots, all of them blank as usual. Even Ellis's chatter wasn't enough to get their attention. " Got any big infected down south?" He asked warily, Ellis and Matthew both looking at them.

" Chargers and Tanks are about the biggest I've seen." Ellis said, Matthew nodding alongside him. " Well, them and the purple spined things that attacked us in the tunnel."

" That was a Shooter." Sion corrected for him, sighing as he walked. " Well, at least that's what we called them." he looked over at a female common who was wailing at another female, the two commons starting to try and claw at each other pitifully, a corpse beside them.

" It's a sad sight." Matthew said, hanging his head. " I've seen so many bodies out here, it's scary. So many people are gone for good..." he lowered his eyes with a soft noise. " Y' know... I just keep hopin' that I'll wake up and find I left the tv on with a scary movie playing, the world normal."

Ellis nodded softly, agreeing with him. " So many people..."

Sion said nothing, unable to remember what it was like before the infection. He couldn't find it in him to sympathize with them when this was the only world he knew, a cold unforgiving world. He let Ellis and Matthew talk some more, sighing as he looked up at the sky, seeing the stadium entrance coming into view. " This the place?"

Matthew nodded, wringing his hands. " Yeah... this is the place." Ellis noticed the sudden bout of nervousness Matthew was exhibiting, becoming wary. " Ya don't like the stadium?" he asked, lifting an eyebrow.

Matthew shook his head. " No, there's a Screamer that lives there... sorta like a die-hard punk who doesn't know that screaming into the mike isn't music. He screams into it whenever he pleases, and a horde comes along... last time I got attacked, I got hurt."

He pulled up the side of his shirt to show everyone a still healing slash wound on his abdomen. " Hordes ain't real kind to us."

Sion nodded in earnest, pushing the door open with a soft noise, holding his gun tightly as they walked in, the air outside getting cold, the winds forboding.

* * *

"When the moon sets red, best head back, lest you run into the devil~"

* * *

End Chapter 32

Short, but it's what I wanted, a quick chapter to set up before one (hopefully) crazy Finale!

Anyways, Happy New Year to all, and may you all not be too drunk or hung over to enjoy the chapter~ Ciao~

Reviews appreciated, flames used for party tricks.


	33. Stage

Chapter 33: Stage

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead 2

Yeah, new year, new ME!

* * *

" It's been over forty minutes, we'd better go get them." Coach said, hefting his shotgun as he prepared to go outside, Nick giving the bigger man a look.

" What's going on out there?" Chad asked, helping Rochelle to her feet. " It's been painfully quiet. I hope that Matthew person didn't lead them into some sort of hairbrained trap..."

" Knowing them, he probably has." Nick said, ignoring the look Rochelle gave him. " And I get the feeling that we're the ones who have to go get them, right?"

Coach gave him a look as if he thought Nick was somewhat crazy for even suggesting that they leave anyone behind, Nick sighing and walking after them, stopping when he saw a movement out of the corner of his eye, tensing when he saw a figure walking their way. " Hold up... we have a guest."

Chad lifted his head, eyes widening in realization when he saw the figure clearly. " You... you're Desert, the one from the the forest..."

Desert tilted his head, shadowed eyes gazing at Chad. " So... we meet again in our travels."

Chad nodded eagerly. " Yeah. Did you ever find your family?" he smiled softly at him, Nick and Coach watching the two men speaking. Rochelle was more curious about the conversation, seeing as how Chad had met this person before.

Desert nodded softly. " I'm on my way to meet him. You look as if you are in a rather large hurry, and the air here is stagnant with anxiety, what is going on?"

" One of our friends got kidnapped, and we're following a lead on him." Chad quickly explained.

Desert lifted his head slightly. " Then I had best leave you to your task..." he got cut short when Chad grabbed his arm.

" Can you help us, just for a bit?" Chad asked, determination in his eyes. "The more people the better."

Rochelle and Coach nodded eagerly, Nick crossing his arms with an irritated look, Desert giving him a soft smile. " Don't worry, I'll be gone once it's over." he said, following after Chad, picking the pace up as they headed for the stadium entrance.

* * *

Nick ground his teeth after he hurried after Coach, aiming his gun at nearly every shadow that was bigger than a table, on edge. He had meant to tell the others while Chad and Sion searched for Ark, and possibly have negotiated his way into them leaving the group behind, but as usual, the cards weren't in his favor. The more attached the others got to the infected, the harder it would be to leave them behind. Already, Ellis looked like he was ready to defend Ark and Sion to the death, and wouldn't listen to reason, he was stupid that way.

Infected were still infected at the end of the day, Ark and Sion were all smiles, but they still had teeth and claws. It made him think back to the day that their world became this hell-hole, and where he had been. Like usual, he had been hard at "work," conning gullible suckers out of their hard earned cash with his silver tongue. It was a bit easy to trick people in the south, he guessed it was mostly due to their trusting nature. After a rather successful morning, he was walking down to the local club to enjoy his victory and possibly gamble a couple of wallets in the process when he heard screaming and the sound of chaos.

Some people had been bitten or somehow came into contact with the infection ahead of time, and were attacking people openly in the streets, though Nick hadn't been quite aware of what was going on at the time, the mass hysteria that suddenly occurred had him being more or less shoved in the direction of a hotel for evacuation. It had been hectic to say the least, panicked people everywhere gave him one hell of a headache. On the way up, he had bumped into who he would later know as Coach, who had kindly pointed him in the right direction, the two heading up. On the 15th floor, they bumped into Rochelle, who seemed to be dealing with a small form of shock, just hunched over, muttering softly to herself before jumping in surprise when Coach nudged her shoulder.

She had been crying, Nick vaguely remembered, but he couldn't remember if she had ever told them why, Rochelle following them before they bumped into the lively Ellis. Right away, Nick had pegged Ellis for a gullible sap, the kid seemed to look up to someone like him and smile. He could have murdered someone a minute ago, and the kid would say that the person had done something to him first with the right coercing. Throwing him a bone only served to both amuse and annoy, sometimes one or the other.

On the 28th floor, Coach had loudly complained that whoever had thought to make the evacuation center on the roof was an asshole, and Nick soundly agreed with him. By no means was he old, but he was not exactly young either, and those stairs were a bit taxing. Damned if he was going to tell the others though, he made a quick crack about the helicopter possibly being made of chocolate to spur the bigger man into moving, and to this day he was fairly certain Coach wanted to hit him for it. Sadly, his laughter died in his throat when he saw the helicopters flying away, having sighed as he watched the scene, uttering " Looks like there's been a change of plans."

How true.

The words he had said then... it was the same now, there had been a change in plans. Coach and the others were blind to what was going on, and he had to make the dangers known immediately. However, Chad's presence made things difficult, in such a short time, the doctor had managed to become friendly with the others. On a good day, Nick himself could barely get to "tolerable," and regularly scored " begrudgingly tolerated." He could very well end up on his own if he miscalculated, and as much as he hated to admit it, traveling in a group increased his chances of survival.

If it had been possible to travel and survive alone, he would have done so long ago, but it was impossible. The first time he had seen a Tank, he instinctively had moved closer to the others. It was a safety net he had despised, but recognized that it was necessary.

Sighing, he returned to the present day as he saw Chad speaking to Desert about how much time had passed since they last saw him, a somewhat bored look on the man's face, as well as a hint of possible urgency for the kidnapped individual. Hurrying along took time, and they also had minimal idea as to where they were going, so Chad was just trying to lighten the mood. Nick closed his eyes and rubbed at them to wipe away some of his exhaustion, jolting up when he heard a scream, looking around. " Was that Ellis? Sounded girly enough." he asked, Coach and Rochelle taking off in that direction as fast as they could,Chad already running.

" I hope he's okay." Desert said, running after Chad, Nick groaning as he ran alongside him. " He'd better be, because I'm going to kill him for making me have to run everywhere." the conman added.

* * *

" OH MY GOD IT'S COTTON CANDY!" Ellis squealed, Matthew eagerly nodding in agreement, Sion hitting his head on the wall for the fourth time in less than two minutes. " One- fucking-candy-booth... and they're distracted." he moaned, hitting his head several times. " CAN WE FOCUS?"

" I am!" Ellis said defensively. " M' just remembering where it is so we can come back later."

"Strategic reasons!" Matthew added, Sion glaring at them. _I will not kill them, I will not kill them, I will not kill them..._

" Ellis, you are a dead man after this." Nick said, panting as the rest of the group caught up, Desert leaning against the wall with an amused smirk. " Once we reach some form of safety, you are dead."

" Why not now?" Ellis asked, curious as to why Nick would refrain from strangling him on the spot.

" Because I still need your gun arm to get me to safety." Nick said with a cocky smirk. " Once we're safe, then I'll kill you."

" At least he's being honest about it." Coach said dryly. " I'd rather y' not kill the boy now anyways, we still have a missing person out there."

* * *

In the meantime, Desert had walked over to Matthew, the two smiling at each other. " Nice to see you, little brother." Desert said softly. " I see you've pulled your hair back again, and you still look as goofy as ever."

Matthew rubbed his neck, smiling. " And I see y' still talking with y' new york accent, when y' gonna drop back into what y' grew up with? It's been a few years, but y' still a southerner, through and through."

Desert shrugged his shoulders. " I'm sure it'll snap back sometime, for now, can you tell me what's going on? Chad brought me up to speed, but I'm afraid that there's a few holes in the story."

"One of their friends got kidnapped, and I'm supposed to be taking them to where I saw them last." Matthew replied. " But... it's at the stadium..."

Desert turned his head, looking at the stadium. " Ugh... the last place I wanted to visit." he said with a hint of disgust, Matthew nodding alongside him. " That being said, on a different note, what are you doing here?"

Matthew shook his head. " Lookin' for y', but let's not go through the why's and how's..." he covered his ears as he heard some loud microphone feedback. " We've got some unwanted company."

Everyone grimaced as some nasty hard rock started to play, Ellis grinding his teeth. " I swear, some people shouldn't be ALLOWED near guitars..." he said, Nick nodding in agreement.

" I can't even understand what that guy's singing!" Rochelle complained, Sion listening to the unearthly wails echoing through the area, growing paler by the second. " If we're going to get Ark and get rescued... we had better start running." he said, voice trembling.

Chad didn't need to figure out why Sion had gotten even paler than usual, a Screamer's wail was capable of calling all infected within a certain range, but one amplified by a microphone... a LOT of infected were heading their way. Shuddering, he hurried alongside others to go into the stadium, hearing pained yelps and howls. " Is that Ark...?"

The whole team made it inside despite the few staff infected throwing themselves in their way, some not knowing what to make of the sight. Ark was tied to a speaker, screaming in pain as the music continued, the singer belting out another garbled note to make everyone cringe. " Damn, that's loud! Someone turn it off!" Nick complained, covering his ears as Sion winced, trying to make sense of the garbled mess.

" So... the gang's all here." a cold voice said, Ark's kidnapper sitting on a nearby bench, arms crossed. " Not much of a show, is it? But, he's the best I could get on such short notice." he moved his head slightly, a bullet hole appearing beside his head as Nick ground his teeth, reloading. " Careful... as we speak, over a hundred infected are flocking to that guy's song... are you sure you want to waste ammunition now?"

Nick stifled a snarl, clicking the new magazine into place. " If it gets this bullshit situation out of my hair, I'd gladly waste a whole clip on your sorry ass."

The guy laughed heartily. " A feisty one, haven't seen one like you in a while..." he curled his lips into a small snarl. " I thought they killed all of the stupid ones."

Nick returned the snarl. " I'd say they missed one, you're still roaming around."

" I'd say you're the stupid one... traveling with infected isn't very bright." the man said, folding his hands together.

" What? What infected...?" Ellis said, Rochelle lowering her weapon curiously. The second the words were out of his mouth, the man let out a short laugh which grew into a long one, practically reveling in the sheer amusement. " Oh, you didn't know... did you? The boy I have tied to the speaker, the one standing in the middle... and the two who led you here, they're all infected." he said, pointing to Ark, Sion, Desert and Matthew. " Carriers of the disease that ruined the world you cherished so."

* * *

Rochelle and Coach turned to look at Sion, who hid his face and looked away from them, Desert and Matthew's glares never ceasing. " What a night of comedy this is! I think my sides will split from the dramatic irony in the air, a bunch of survivors relying on the protection of some filthy animals!"

" Hey! We're not animals! We still can think and act for ourselves!" Matthew shouted angrily, wincing when the man gave him a look. " You be quiet, infected. The likes of your kind only serve to ruin our lives, or at least what we've got left. How long will it be before you infect that group with your disease? Kill one of them in a fit of anger? Simply leave him behind to die? You say that you're still human on the inside...your mind is just as sick as your body."

Ellis looked over at Sion, worry etched into his face. " Sion... the guy's just playing us... right? You're not one of the things we've been running from, are ya?"

" He is." Nick said bluntly, eyes still trained on the man, waiting for a good shot, ignoring the others' small gasps. " But... right now we had better prepare ourselves. Stealing your job for a moment, Ro', Today's forecast: Shitstorm." he said, watching the infected crawling over the ledges, snarling and growling.

Desert shoved Matthew in Ark's direction, the two splitting up. Matthew went after the screamer on the stage, Desert was aiming for the man on the bench, snapping everyone out of their confusion as the horde closed in. Unable to actually believe that Sion and Ark were infected, Ellis ran after Matthew, lifting his tire iron and swinging it into the nearest infected like a golf club, knocking it over with a bloodied skull as Rochelle grabbed Coach's arm.

" Think later, survive now." she said, gesturing to the sound booth at the top of the seats. " Let's pull the curtains on this performance." Coach nodded as well, gathering up a discarded baseball bat and starting to clear the way. Nick was stuck with Chad and Sion, the two fighting the horde that was flooding in from the entrances, a clown infected bringing several friends with him, Chad hitting him in the nose with his fist, trying to find his discarded gun. Sion had nothing to say except for the occasional yelps, Nick not speaking to him either. For now, everyone was focused on survival.

* * *

" Damn, where are they all coming from?" Ellis snapped, swinging his tire iron like a pro, caving in another infected's head before sweeping the legs out from another, bringing his favorite weapon down on it's head.

" I really don' know!" Matthew replied from somewhere nearby, kicking one infected in the gut, wincing as another clawed at his arm, grabbing it and swinging it onto the ground. " Must've been on the other side of th' place." he said, gritting his teeth as he punched one in the face. " Y' got another weapon on y' somewhere? This punching them till they keel over ain' workin'."

Ellis fumbled around until he found a regular pistol, tossing it over to him, Matthew scooping it up and checking the ammunition on it before firing it into an infected's head, grimacing. " I hate pistols..." he grumbled, firing again. " Ain't a hell of a lotta shots an' not much power neither." Ellis sadly had to agree, swinging his weapon again, managing to scramble on the stage. His eyes widened as he came face to face with a badly mutated one, followed by a messy belch and a wave of green.

" AWW HELL NO!" Ellis screeched, covered in the foul smelling vomit. " I HATE BOOMERS!" he struggled to wipe off the putrid liquid, shaking his head as he got quickly pulled into the horde, Matthew running to help him. In all the confusion, Ellis slapped Matthew's hand away, but the man was undeterred, reaching into the horde again and wrenched an infected away from Ellis, tugging sharply.

Once he had managed to pull Ellis from the horde, he closed his mouth, making a hacking noise before spitting what looked like a ball of liquid at the horde, those covered and those standing in the liquid screeching and trying to either keep reaching them or roll around in regular dirt. Matthew winced and wiped at his lips quickly, spitting some excess bile into the dirt, hacking softly.

" Yer a Spitter? But... bu... all the ones we seen before are female!" Ellis said, stunned. Matthew grimaced as he looked at Ellis. " Acid reflux." he said simply, pulling Ellis to his feet. Ellis silently nodded, shaking off the last residual bile. He picked up his fallen weapon again and lunged for the stage again, scrambling onto it and finding a discarded guitar, picking it up and swinging it into the nearest speaker, damaging it as Matthew pulled another one loose, the screamer up on stage sounding irate.

" Hey man, you don't ruin the show jus' cause you don' like it!" he snapped, dyed electric blue hair flopping around in a mohawk, his pierced tongue and ears gleaming in the light of the stage. " Now get off, I'm about to sing my biggest hit!"

" Concerts canceled, neighbors are complainin'." Ellis growled, balling up his fist and swinging it, eyes widening when the Screamer blocked it, throwing his own punch. No stranger to fighting though, Ellis started to fight with the Screamer on stage, the two brawling as Matthew moved past them, tearing at the cabling keeping Ark tied to the speaker. The Hunter was unconscious, having passed out a while ago, slumping forward when he was freed, Matthew gently catching him and setting him down. " There y' go... we're gonna get y' outta here."

" Go to hell!" the Screamer screeched, swiping at Ellis. " Show me how it's done!" Ellis snapped right back, tackling him to the ground, grunting when he got kicked to the side, the two rolling on the stage as Matthew looked up at the sky, grimacing at how gloomy it was before leaving Ellis to his own devices, needing to get Ark to a more secure spot. Setting Ark down, he called up to the booth where Rochelle and Coach were fighting off the horde.

" Set up the concert, it'll call th' heli to come t' us!"

* * *

" Set up the concert, he said." Rochelle relayed the message to Coach, who hadn't been paying that much attention, swinging her axe into an infected's head. Coach tilted his head, looking at the sound studio. " They took out some of the equipment on the stage, it won't be enough to call the helicopter, won't be loud enough." he said, shaking his head.

" C'mon Coach, you're doubting the Midnight Riders? Largest lightshow in the business? Don't give up just yet!" Rochelle encouraged. " They took out some of the sound set, doesn't mean the fireworks won't still light!"

Coach cheered up upon thinking of that. " You're right, baby girl... come on, we've got a concert to throw, let's get out of here and make the Midnight Riders proud!"

* * *

Ellis had broken free of the Screamer after punching his lights out, scrambling over to where Ark had been put, trying to wake him, the Screamer getting to his feet, stumbling around with one hand on his head, pointing accusingly at Matthew. " I don't get it, how come you're on the humans side? They want all of us dead, why are you trying to help scum like them?

Matthew stood up, glaring at the Screamer. " Cause I was a human too, why shouldn't I help them find a cure so I can go back to m' old life?" his glare darkened when the Screamer laughed at him. " Hah! You think they'll do that for you if you help them? You're stupider than I thought! They'll be friendly to you as long as you earn your keep, but you aren't their friend, you're just a tool that they'll pitch away in a heartbeat once they don't need it or if you become a liability!" he barked.

Matthew growled and grabbed his throat, lifting him off the ground, the Screamer's short legs dangling in place, studded boots kicking about. " Gugh... you really do earn your name...you and your brother." he gasped, Matthew slamming him against the wall. The Screamer winced before opening his mouth and screeching right in Matthew's ears, the male Spitter dropping him as he covered his ears, trying to stop the ringing in his head, the punk screamer scampering away, Ellis's shots missing it completely.

" Let him go... we have more important things to worry about." Matthew spat, kneeling to try and wake Ark. " We took out so much of the sound equipment... we may not be able to make enough noise to bring the pilot here..."

" No, but we got one hell of a light show." Coach's voice came over the loudspeakers. " Ya'll set up down there, we got a concert to throw!"

" Let's get this party started!" Ellis cheered, Matthew nodding eagerly as the two ran about, setting up fireworks, a rather annoyed Nick climbing up onto the stage. " Hey, Nick! Where ya been?" Ellis said cheerfully. " Man, ya shoulda seen it, first I got into a fist fight with that guy wailin on stage, and then he-"

"He got away." Nick hissed, picking up a guitar and testing the swing, Chad and Sion coming up behind him, Sion moving to try and wake up Ark. " Don't bother, he won't be up for an hour at the least." Nick said, feeling somewhat satisfied with the guitar.

" Who got away?" Matthew asked, having been too into his own battle to remember what everyone else was doing. " The man who started all of this mess." Desert sighed, shaking his head. " He had a female companion with a motorcycle waiting. I'm amazed she still had gas that was good, but the two drove off after she threw a molotov to keep us from getting close." Chad let out an annoyed huff, sighing as he knelt beside Ark, checking his ears to make sure he was okay. " The Screamer?" he asked softly.

" Injured, but got away." Ellis reported, then trying to recount his epic battle with it, starting up into the prologue as Nick tapped the microphone. " Think we can still make this work?" he said, looking back at the others. Ellis nodded eagerly, dancing in place. " Yeah, and you can sing to the music and everythin', Nick!"

Nick glared at him. " Who do you think I am, Hugh Dillon? Not a chance."

* * *

End Chapter 33

This was actually brought about by a friends comment " What kind of Finale would it be if the equipment was sabotaged and the infected already attacking, no setup time?" My first thought afterwords? " We're all screwed."

XD anyways, I'm gonna keep typing away, now that I've crossed another hurdle, chapters should be easier. On another note, who should be their newest member? Matthew, the fun loving southerner with a acidic bite? Or Desert, the mysterious southerner with an air of allure?


	34. Helicopter

Chapter 34: Helicopter

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead 2

* * *

" Now that things have calmed down a bit, what are you guys still doing here?" Nick said, glancing at the infected men. " Shouldn't you be leaving?" his tone held no emotion, and his eyes were wary. Sion winced, getting Ark onto his back, hefting him slightly. Matthew fumbled with his fingers and Desert looked as emotionless as ever, sighing. " Are we really that despised?" Matthew asked Sion, eyes full of sadness. " I ain't done nothin'... jus' a lil' sick..."

Sion looked back at Matthew. " What we're sick with is what they're afraid of."

Ellis didn't know what to say, looking between everyone as Rochelle and Coach came down from the stands. " I don' hate y' guys..." he said softly. " You guys are nice, and great company." he fiddled with his gun.

Matthew made a noise. " I liked y' company too, Ellis, but if they say we gotta go... we gotta go." he shook his head. " All I ask is that y' guys don't shoot us?" he said hopefully. Ellis and Nick seemed to be contemplating things, covering their ears as one of the Midnight Riders songs began to play. " Damnit, who started before we were ready?" Nick snapped, wincing from the feedback. Ellis's eyes widened as he heard the Screamer's insane giggling over the noise. " The Screamer started it! He started the music!" The feedback was horrible and the lyrics gargled, but it was definitely the recorded music that had been left behind on the stage.

" Excuse me, I have a screamer to 'enlighten...' be right back." Nick grumbled, picking up his guitar, Desert catching his arm, holding him in place.

" Don't. He wants us all to separate so it'll be easier for us to get picked off." the man said, shaking his head softly. Nick tore his arm from him, not making a big show of things as Coach went to the sound stage, raising the volume. " Ain't got no choice, we're gonna have to work with it. Ellis, you round up anything that can keep the infected off the stage, take Ro' with you. Nick, you're with me, we gotta find some supplies that can last us for a bit until the helicopter gets here, let's move people!"

* * *

" He didn't even mention us..." Chad sighed, feeling just a tad upset that he was counted among the infected. Sion looked over at Chad. " It doesn't matter. They made their decision, we need to keep moving on our own." He tried to get Ark up again, sighing deeply. He hated having to make some form of a leader's decision, Ark was much better at these kind of things. Even if the Hunter wasn't very bright sometimes, he had a way of making the best decisions. Looking around, he sighed deeply as he looked up at the stage, his body tensing. The stage was so small... without help someone was going to die.

" Matthew, can you look after Ellis and Rochelle?" He said, licking his lips softly. " I'll go with Nick and Coach. We have to make sure they reach the helicopter, Ark would have my hide if I didn't try." He straightened up a bit. " Chad, you got any molotovs left? I want a ring of fire at the back entrance, make sure they don't get in! If you have to use gasoline tanks to keep it going, then do it. Desert, I want you to make sure that the infected don't get on stage from the back way, ambushes are their only real trick. Also, can I count on you to keep Ark safe until he wakes up? When the helicopter gets here, get them on it if you have to toss them, let's do it!" All of the infected and human present nodded and split up.

Chad's hands deftly snatched a molotov off of a nearby table, the scientist portion of him wondering where the random supplies come from, setting the back entrance on fire as infected started to swarm through. Matthew bounded up the stairs after Ellis and Rochelle, Desert accepting Ark from Sion and moving to the back entrance, pulling out his weapon, a Desert Eagle and firing into an infected's head, using his foot to kick up a guitar, catching it in midair. Twisting his body, he swung it into another infected's head, blood splattering on his face slightly as he held his ground.

Free from having to watch Ark, Sion bolted after Nick and Coach, catching up with them. " We'll help you until the helicopter gets here and you guys get on it." he told Coach, reloading his gun. Coach looked at him for a moment. " What-" Sion spoke before he could get a sentence off. " It's important that you guys get to safety. I know everyone here's tired of having to fight." he said. Never one to deny help, Coach nodded softly. " Good to have you on our side for this fight, friend." he smiled at Sion, who returned the smile.

Nick said nothing, watching with a critical eye as Sion rushed to defend the two while they looked for supplies, Matthew over by Ellis and Rochelle, beating in one infected's head with a folding chair. " Let's make this crazy plan work, Coach, then we can leave this mess behind." He finally said, the older man nodding. Tearing open the crate, he had to refrain from retching and revering the items in the box, reaching his hand in and tearing the bile jar out of the material. " HELL YES!" he handed one over to Coach, looking at his own jar with a raised eyebrow before a smirk touched his lips. Whistling to catch Sion's attention, he smirked again when the Smoker turned to look at him. " Here you go, one jar of irresistible infected perfume." he said with a chuckle, finding amusement in the look of horror and disgust on the Smoker's face as he tossed the jar to him.

" I don't even- gah, that is an image I do not need!" Sion grimaced, trying to get the image of a fashionable boomer out of his mind. Something that fat and grotesque shouldn't be wandering down a catwalk or doing commercials. Coach laughed at the Smoker's mental distress, tossing a box of candy aside, scooping up the ones that fell out and dropping it into his pack. Can never have too much supplies, mind you. Tucking some more of the food away into the shoulder pack he usually carried, he clipped the bile jar to his side, hefting a baseball bat while Nick tore open another crate, moving quickly. " Fireworks?" he said softly, turning the box over. Thinking on it, he tossed a box to Coach. " We can use these to help signal the 'copter!"

Coach nodded, tucking the box under his arms. " Let's head back to the other's, pronto!"

The small group made their way back down the stands, Ellis kicking an infected off the stage with a grunt, grabbing his fallen tire iron to swing into another's face. Rochelle, Ellis and Matthew were doing a good job of defending the stage while the music played, Desert having moved away from the back entrance with Ark in tow, setting the Hunter against the stage curtain.

" Sorry, they're amassing faster than I can deal with them." Desert apologized while bowing his head, Chad returning as well to the group, looking apologetic as well. " Mollies ran out, had to retreat." he sighed.

Sion gave them a soft look, looking at the survivors. "We're gonna get you guys to the helicopter safely... Ark wouldn't be happy with me if I let something happen to everyone here. I do have a single favor to ask... when you guys go... can you take Chad with you?"

* * *

Chad let out a strangled noise, looking at Sion in surprise, the Smoker continuing on. " He's a good man, we owe our lives to him, and he'll be a big help to anyone who needs it." he bit his lip and bowed his head slightly. " Please."

Coach let out a sound, seeing a lot of Nick in Sion. It was clearly paining the Smoker to ask a favor of someone when he knew he really didn't deserve it, so he was putting his pride on the back burner and asking them for a favor. Seeing him like this... he really didn't have the heart to tell him no. " Alright, friend... we'll take him with us when the time comes."

Sion looked relieved, lifting his head. " Thank you." he had been worried that the survivors wouldn't take Chad with them. He didn't have time to ponder it as a chunk of concrete landed nearby, a Tank roaring at all of them. Predictably, they all scattered to escape what would be an otherwise painful impact. Ellis wasn't nearly as lucky in getting away, letting out a pained nose as he was knocked a good distance away, hitting the ground and tumbling, groaning in pain. Tanks were so strong it should be considered illegal, and they knew how to use that strength to their advantage. " Ellis, hold on, we're coming!" Rochelle cried as Coach threw his bile jar at the Tank, a small horde gathering as a distraction, the two running to try and get to the mechanic. Desert was faster then they were though, quickly moving to Ellis's side and helping him to his feet. " Can you still fight?" he asked softly.

Ellis only gave a pained grunt in response, having hit the ground hard. He wasn't sure if anything was broken, he was definitely sure something was fractured though. Wincing, he leaned on Desert a little more than he would have liked, the older man helping to lead him away from the Tank, who was pounding the summoned horde to dust. Nick took the opportunity to pick up a discarded assault rifle that had been left behind by someone and reload it, unloading the clip into the Tank with Sion and Chad helping him. During a Tank attack, it was important to make sure that you brought it down. Running away was almost never an option, the only thing one could do was fight back.

Desert helped Ellis away from the skirmish and let him rest over by where Ark was, turning back to the fight while rolling up his sleeves, revealing flattened spines. After a moment, he returned to the fight, Matthew settling beside Ellis. " What is he?" Ellis asked in a dazed tone.

" He's a Shooter, Ellis. Y' know, the spikey things? He just don't have the spines all over the place." Matthew said, lifting Ellis's shirt to check for injuries, pressing one hand against Ellis's ribs. Upon hearing the mechanic hiss in pain, he withdrew his hand. " Dunno if they're broken, but they're bruised at the least. It'll take a bit to heal them."

" Why ain't you spitting at the Tank or something?" Ellis asked, wincing as Matthew checked his other side, that side not hurting as bad. " I mean, he is your brother, right? Aren't you gonna help him out?"

Matthew shook his head. " He can handle himself. And... I can't. I ain't like the other spitters, who make that stuff constantly. Spitting hurts sometimes, it's like throwin' up because of a stomach bug. After your stomach's empty, it's just dry and it still hurts like hell."

Ellis understood, perking up when he heard a groan from Ark, but sighed when the Hunter didn't stir. " What are you guys gonna do after we leave?" he asked, hearing the Tank crash to the ground behind him slain. " I mean, once we take off on the 'copter?"

Matthew set about making sure Ellis would be okay, eyes not meeting the mechanic's gaze. " Me n' my brother... we're gonna head home. We got a nice house that m' mother left us, it'd probably be a good idea to head home and rest."

"Rest sounds real nice about now." Ellis sighed, getting to his feet with a grimace, staggering slightly. He righted himself quickly and went to head back to the others, the fireworks show already starting, the lights shooting into the sky.

* * *

" If this doesn't work, we're going to be in a shitload of trouble." Nick said, watching the fireworks. " If the pilot can see it, its a damn good bet that every infected in the area can too."

Rochelle looked up as well. " Don't be so negative about it, Nick... it's got to work." she said, with a small note of hope in her voice. She was praying that the helicopter showed soon, it was the only chance they had of putting significant distance between them and the infection.

As the helicopter flew into view, the horde's cry rose up once more, Coach looping an arm around Ellis to balance him out, waiting for it to find a spot to let them on. " Come on, let's go!" he said, hurrying towards the stands. Chad refused to go, but a harsh look from Sion had him gathering his bag up to run after them, Nick helping Rochelle along as another Tank came barreling at them, roaring and bellowing it's aggressions. Ellis was the first one to be helped onto the helicopter, breathing a huge sigh of relief before nearly screaming in fear as a huge chunk of asphalt landed near the helicopter, followed by another angry bellow as a Shooter came out of wherever it had been sleeping, fighting with the Tank.

The two kings of the area battled it out as the helicopter wavered, the pilot trying to stay still long enough for everyone to get on board, clearly wanting to be elsewhere. Spines and concrete flew about like it was no one's business, Sion yelping as one landed dangerously close to him. The stadium was being rapidly overrun by infected trying to make one last push to kill the survivors, Chad and Coach getting in next, Chad's eyes flicking nervously to Sion and the others. Matthew had pulled back closer to the stage, worry etched into his face as Ark rested on his back, Sion still using his regular pistols, Desert armed with a guitar, both doing their best to defend the stage.

It was clearly a losing battle, but the infected were holding their ground and their promise. Not once did Sion or Matthew look at the survivors, both focused on continuing to live. Chad looked back at Coach, eyes pleading with him somewhat before he looked back at the struggling infected on stage, biting his lip as Nick helped Rochelle onto the copter.

Coach watched the group struggle, reminded of the event at the mall. It looked exactly the same way, except that time, he had been balancing Rochelle on his shoulder, Nick and Ellis running about frantically to look for gas cans while the infected had been so desperate then, the usually grumpy and sarcastic Nick was assisting Ellis in finding gas cans, the tension between them practically non-existent.

It looked exactly the same.

What was fighting on that stage was not four infected individuals, but four people determined to live, determined to work things out between themselves and another for the sake of seeing one more day.

Survivors.

" Hurry up, come on!" Coach called to them, ignoring the sounds of fighting around them. " If you hurry, you can make it!" he shouted. Matthew and Sion looked up at him in surprise, Ellis crawling to the side. " Come on guys, Hurry!" he shouted. " Copter ain't gonna wait much longer!" he said, a piece of concrete landing nearby the helicopter, Nick getting thrown to the side of it, hitting his head.

" Dammit, nevermind waiting, the copter isn't going to LAST much longer!" Nick groaned, holding his head. Matthew and Sion looked at each other for a minute before Desert spoke to them. " Go, I'll stall the horde, you three get on the helicopter!" he said, turning back to the horde.

Matthew grimaced and handed Ark over to Sion, who immediately started making his way to the helicopter, ducking as a spine narrowly miss them. It seemed as if the Tank and Shooter were more interested in them now, rather than each other. " Are you sure?" Matthew asked his brother, fear evident in his eyes.

Desert simply smiled back at him. " I've lived this long on my own, I can handle it from here. Go, they need you. You know how to get back to the house." he said, ending the discussion.

Matthew could hear the others calling for him and took one last look at his brother. " Stay safe, okay?" he said, taking off, scrambling and tripping a few times as the Tank thundered after him. He stumbled again as the ground trembled beneath his feet, Sion reaching the helicopter and handing Ark to Coach, who took the unconscious Hunter and set him inside, Chad helping him in as Matthew scrambled onto the stands, climbing over the rails as the Tank dug it's fingers into the concrete, lifting up a huge chunk.

Before it could toss the concrete, a molotov smashed against it's head, igniting the Tank's body.

" I'm your opponent." Desert said coldly, picking up another jar. " I am your enemy, come and get me!"

The Tank redirected itself, aiming for the lone target while Matthew managed to scramble on board, the Helicopter pilot unable to wait any longer and started to lift off, nearly clipping the side of the stands. Once fully inside, Matthew pressed his face to the side of the glass, looking for his brother, who seemed to be keeping the Tank in one place, Desert looking at the helicopter and smiling softly, giving them a wave before running, the Tank hot on his heels.

" That... is one brave soul." Coach said, watching as well. " Matthew, we wouldn't have made it if not for him." he gently reached out to pat his shoulder. " May god protect him, and let us meet again."

" Amen." Ellis said, leaning against the side of a seat.

* * *

Nick had no words to offer to console Matthew, who was trying to keep high spirits despite the fact that he no longer knew if his brother had survived or not. Infected or not, trying to take on a Tank by himself was a death wish. It could be done, but only if one was extremely lucky. Getting to his feet shakily, he moved towards the pilot's seat, seeking air. It was a bit crowded in the helicopter, and he needed to get over the sudden pounding headache his accident had caused earlier, sighing as he looked out the front, hearing coughing.

Never a man for being reckless, Nick stood again and looked around, trying to find the source, a lump of dread starting to settle in his stomach as his ears traced the noise to the pilots seat. It had been two hours since they left the carnival behind, and lots of distance had been put between them and that accursed place. Still, he had once heard that it didn't take too much time for the infection to spread within the human body...

He let out a startled noise as the helicopter lurched slightly, everyone being jarred from their usual places, cries of alarm coming from those who had been half-asleep, the conman getting up to get a better look at the pilot. Blood was dripping out from under the helmet as Nick heard a moan, the lump turning into a red hot poker that scorched his insides, unfocused cloudy eyes gazing back at him. " Shit!"

In his defense, his body had reacted long before his mind caught up. Perhaps he didn't react to Ark in the others in the same way because he didn't discover their secret in a heartbeat, he had time to adjust and think on things. This was different, survival was at the top of his mind, and this wasn't someone he knew. Without really thinking, he removed his magnum from it's usual place at his side, bringing it to the area beneath the helmet and firing twice. No harm in checking. Yet another infected fell before him, he could relax again.

It took 4 seconds for his thought process to catch up. _Nice one, dumbass, you shot the PILOT, _was his first thought. The one that followed was; _Shit, we're in a helicopter. That was the PILOT._

His mouth summed up his thoughts for him. "Shit."

* * *

End Chapter 34

Well, another chapter done, and I'm pleased with this one. I didn't get to do a scene I wanted to use, but in the end it turned out much better.

Swamp Fever... my old nemesis. We meet again. I have only successfully completed that campaign ONCE, and that was a fluke. Dead Center? Please, warmup. Dark Carnival? Cooldown. Hard Rain? A workout. The Parish? A easily do-able marathon. Swamp Fever? Call the paramedics, gamer down!

Anyways, reviews are appreciated!

Ciao~


	35. Ferry

Chapter 35: Ferry

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead 2

* * *

Ellis let out an indignant squawk as the helicopter lurched to the side, Sion crashing against his ribs and making them hurt even more than they already did, wincing as he got loose, tumbling slightly again as the helicopter lurched to the other side.

Chad's brain immediately went into damage assessment mode... No pilot. In a helicopter. "Shit." he muttered, clambering for the cockpit as Nick did, having a hard time when the craft lurched sharply to the side, sending Sion flying to crash into the wall with his ribs, crying out and tumbling when his seatbelt popped loose and he tumbled about in the cabin somewhat, Ellis squawking the whole time as Chad and Nick went about keeping the helicopter from spiraling down and crashing... At least, they hoped they did.

Sion let out a sharp gasp as he tumbled forward, smacking into Matthew as Chad and Nick struggled to keep the helicopter upright. It seemed to be an uphill climb for the two men, the dead pilot's body being a rather large obstacle to properly accessing the controls, Ellis hanging onto Ark's arm to keep him from sliding everywhere. To the Smoker, the ground was light-years away yet still coming too quickly for his tastes, it seemed as if they would crash before the helicopter could stabilize.

Ellis was too busy focusing on holding onto the door of the helicopter as well as Ark to really think about other trivial matters, such as hitting the ground, until he glanced out the window and noticed that those trees seemed to grow awful fast... Matthew yelped and grabbed onto the seat tightly as Nick and Chad both swore. The sounds of their voices and the yells lost to the cacophony of the rotors breaking wood and the metal crunching before there was a sharp impact, causing the mechanic to bash his head, then all went black.

* * *

Scared was the best word Ark would use for his situation, having woken up in a helicopter wreck rather than still tied to the speaker like he last remembered. The helicopter thankfully hadn't gone up in a giant fireball, but there was still a problem to address; getting everyone out. Pulling off his gloves for a better grip, he hooked his arms underneath Rochelle's and started to see if he could move her, checking to make sure she wasn't pinned by anything. Luckily, she wasn't, the woman moaning softly as Ark dragged her out of the helicopter, getting a good look around the area. There was a train car not that far off, he could get everyone there and let them rest until they woke up. He finished dragging Rochelle out and started to try and wake Coach up, who was laying on the side, a bruise forming on his head. " Coach..." he whimpered, shaking the big man's shoulder.

Miraculously, Coach stirred, putting a hand to the bruise and swearing softly. " Shit... guess I'm not dead, since it hurts." he grumbled, looking at Ark. " Oh... you're awake, son. What happened?"

" Crashed, no idea where we are." Ark said softly, crouching. " Trying to move everyone to safer place. Help?"

Even with Ark helping him, it took a total of three minutes to get Coach on his feet, the bigger man picking Rochelle up gently. " Hold on baby girl, we're all gonna get some rest soon, let's jus' get you inside." he said, heading for the train car as Ark reached for Chad next. The medic was out cold, but thankfully only had a few cuts and bruises, dragging him out as well before listening to the area, scared at how silent it was. Things were bad when it was silent. Grimacing, he turned to get Matthew, who was a new face to him but would be helped regardless, tensing when he heard a moan.

His tense muscles relaxed a moment later when Nick's dazed voice broke the silence. " Damn... no wonder I like keeping my feet on the ground." he groaned, limbs feeling too heavy to move. " Fuck... if you're alive, say something. If you're dead... just lay there." he called, Coach wandering over to him. " Good to see you're still your usual self, Nick." he said, kneeling to try and help.

" I'm always my usual self." Nick retorted, easing himself up slightly and grimacing as his body protested the movement. " Shit..."

" Shit is right... did anyone get the number of that truck?" Sion grumbled, face down on the ground. " I think my nose is crunched." He managed to get upright, rubbing his face with a soft noise. Luckily, his nose wasn't broken, but it was bleeding somewhat. " Damn... we all land in once piece?"

A collective groan rose up from those present, Ark carrying Chad piggyback to the traincar, Ellis rolling over to get up as well. Various bruises and scrapes decorated the entire crew, but they managed to keep walking to the traincar. Only when all of them were inside did the fights start.

" What the HELL, Nick, you shot the PILOT!" Ellis barked, pointing a finger accusingly at the conman, aggravated.

Nick was in a hell of a bad mood, snapping back. " What, did you want me to do, politely wait for him to crash the helicopter and attack whoever didn't die?" he was in the process of bandaging his arm, having gotten a nasty scrape on it during the crash. He'd have to remember to get Chad to look at it later, once the doctor had woken up.

" Well no, but couldn't you have at leas' given us a warnin'?" Ellis countered, trying to not lose ground in the argument. Granted, shooting the pilot and bringing the helicopter down without killing everyone was commendable, but everyone else had no warning whatsoever and those who were already hurt just got injured worse. Even Ark, who hadn't really been conscious was injured, sporting several new bruises.

Nick crossed his arms, tapping his foot angrily as he gave Ellis a hard stare. " Listen, sport. It was either defend us all, or we end up like them." he said, gesturing to common infected vomiting outside. " Damned if I'm gonna spend the rest of my life like that."

Ellis nodded softly, turning to go do something else to help, stepping over Matthew. The male spitter was still out cold, but at least wasn't bleeding from any open cuts. Coach couldn't help but be grateful when Chad woke up, the medic rising to his feet shakily, holding onto the wall for support. " Did we all make it?" he asked, looking around.

" We all made it." Coach confirmed for him, Chad breathing a sigh of relief before looking over at Ark, who was standing guard. " Glad to see you awake."

Ark nodded softly at both men, looking over at Matthew. " Who this?"

Chad stretched one leg out, testing it gingerly with a grimace, not able to really move. " Male Spitter... named Matthew. He's Desert's twin brother." he said when Ark gave him a dumbfounded look. Ark nodded in slight recognition, sitting back down and looking out at the scenery. " Well... since some of us are awake and some aren't... how about we form a small three-man party to go search?" Chad offered, trying to fill the unnerving silence. " Might still be some supplies left around here that could be useful."

"Not going." Nick said from his spot, Ellis reluctantly agreeing with him. "My head hurts somethin' awful, I jus' need to rest a little." the mechanic apologized, Chad nodding softly.

" I'll help look for supplies." Coach said, standing up while stretching. " Just make sure that those of us still out are protected, okay?"

"I'll go too!" Ark said, bouncing in place, eager to help. He was a bit ashamed that everyone had to help him at the carnival, so to him, this was his chance to make up for it. His cheerful spirit plummeted when Coach looked at him and Sion. " You two and me will go." he said, gesturing outside.

There wasn't any malice in his voice, but the tone clearly stated he wanted explanations. Biting his lip, Ark nodded and trotted outside. Sion following as well. Silently, the three headed to the town entrance, Chad watching them leave before closing the train car door for safety.

* * *

" So... how long have you two been at this sort of thing?" Coach asked, breaking the tense silence as the three walked into the town, looking at the two. " I mean, helpin out survivors?"

Sion tilted his head softly. " I guess for a few... what, weeks now? We were with another group before."He fiddled with the pistol that he had kept for protection. " Great group, really, almost like a weird family."

Coach quirked an eyebrow. " Really?"

Sion nodded, smiling a bit because he felt more relaxed now. " Yeah, there was Zoey, the only girl and she was a horror movie nut. You can kinda say she was already prepared in her own way. Francis... he thought it was all one big barfight with no rules and the cops in on the fun. He hates a lot of things though, kind of reminds me of Nick." He grinned now. " Ellis reminds me of Louis, ever optimistic and good at fixing things while you remind me of Bill. Bill was their leader, and he kept everyone together as well as made most of the important decisions."

" Where did you two fit in all of this?" Coach finally asked, eying a nearby warehouse.

Sion kicked aside a rock. " Ark was there before me, and he was their... tracker if you will. He has a great sense of smell, and could find other infected hiding around, and his leaping ability was very handy. Me... I have great eyesight so I took up a gun alongside them, and aided when I could."

Coach stopped listening to watch Ark, who was busy sniffing around, observing the Hunter in action. Ark was trying to learn all of the new scents, and was currently in a small level of hell. The nearby area stunk of rotting corpses and blood, the Hunter sitting in his usual crouch, grimacing as he covered his nose. " Ugh..."

" Smell something we should be aware of?" Sion asked, looking in the same direction as Ark.

" Blood, corpses, infected, just another day in hell." Ark replied dryly. Coach and Sion both shared a soft chuckle, watching Ark grimace. The smell of rotting flesh was a bit overpowering to the Hunter, Ark grimacing and walking a short distance away, sitting down with a soft noise.

" Any idea where we are now?" He finally asked.

" The swamps." Sion answered bluntly, looking around. " Looks like we landed a little ways away from them though."

Ark looked at Sion. " How in the HELL did we get here?"

Coach answered that for him. " We all got on the helicopter and crashed out here when the pilot got infected. Not exactly the highlight of my evenin'."

Ark nodded softly, putting together the pieces while Sion looked onwards. " How come you didn't shoot us?" he asked, looking at Coach. " We're infected, how come you haven't tried to get rid of us?"

Coach shouldered his shotgun, giving Sion a hard stare. " Because I haven't really found a reason to. Ya'll ain't done nothing but try to help us every step of the way, so why would I have a problem with that?"

" Nick certainly has a problem with us." Sion retorted, Ark nodding as well. Coach simply chuckled, shaking his head.

" Well, that's just Nick. At the end of the day, he is concerned for our safety. You guys are sort of... exceptions to the rule." Coach said.

Ark made a noise, nodding eagerly and grinning. Coach was reminded of a very enthusiastic dog while watching Ark sniff around for supplies, heading into the warehouse he had been eying earlier before running out with a upset screech. Tense, he and Sion both hurried to Ark's side, intent on protecting the Hunter from whatever had upset him, both lowering their guns upon seeing no visible enemy.

" It had better not be another cockroach..." Sion mumbled, going into the warehouse, leaving Coach to watch the area, coming out a few minutes with a evil smile on his face. " Hey Ark, thirsty?" He said, waving the acquired bilebomb. Ark stuck up a single finger to give Sion a good hint as to what he thought of that idea, still remembering the incident on the highway.

Coach lifted an amused eyebrow, a smirk on his lips. "Something I'm missing here?" he asked, Sion opening his mouth to tell the tale, Ark's red-eyed glare silencing him.

"... I can't say..." Sion said while trying not to laugh. Judging by Ark's clear hatred of the bilebomb and Sion's earlier comment, it didn't take Coach long to fit one and two together, the bigger man's shoulder's shaking from contained laughter.

" And here I thought Ellis was the only crazy one..." he said in between chuckles. Ark gave him an indignant look, storming into the warehouse to look for supplies, Sion following him with a amused chuckle. " All right, let's see what we can find in here, but don't saddle yourself down in case we need to run." he said, walking after the two.

_Ark and Ellis are so alike... I swear they could be brothers in another time. Like him and that Keith fella he's always talkin' about._

* * *

After convincing Ark to take point and search for infected, Coach and Sion brought the supplies back to everyone, the older of the two taking a moment to evaluate everyone. Ellis was still sleeping, and looked as if he could really use a break from fighting for his life, head gently resting on Rochelle's lap. Rochelle herself was awake and smiling gently, stroking Ellis's hair as he slept, trying to keep the young mechanic soothed while Nick looked on, a twinge of jealousy in the air.

Matthew was awake as well, chewing on some snacks he had, giving Coach a big smile. " Thanks for lettin' us on th' heli." He said, smiling.

Coach nodded. " After what your brother did for us... it wouldn't be fair if we left ya'll behind."

Matthew nodded solemnly, getting to his feet and going outside, looking up at the sky and trying to get his bearings. " What are you looking for?" Chad asked, sitting alongside the door of the traincar.

" Tryin' t' figure out exactly where I am." Matthew said, looking around. " Can't find m' way home if I don' know."

" Home?" Rochelle asked softly, being quiet so Ellis could keep sleeping. " Where is that?"

" M' family's got a home in the swamps... one o' those nice big homes." Matthew said. " Been in the family for generations. After the infection broke out and I got infected, I lived in there on m' own. Infected don' bother me much in there."

" What about your brother?" Chad asked, still knowing that it was probably a sensitive issue for Matthew.

" After people started gettin' bit, I called him on the remainin' lines and asked 'im if he could come home... I was on m' way t' meet him, that's why y' saw me in the carnival."

"Makes sense." Coach said, looking around. " Save for Ellis, how is everyone?"

Chad listed off injuries. " Rochelle was just stunned, and her limp is still somewhat there, but otherwise fine. Nick won't let me examine him, but I guess he's just stressed. Matthew and Ellis both have headaches from the crash which should ease up with medicine, but Ellis has damaged ribs from the Tank. Ark seems to be fine now, and Sion and I don't have any real problems. Thankfully the pain in my leg has gone away."

Coach listened to the evaluation, nodding his head. It sounded favorable to him, Rochelle could help defend everyone now, and Matthew was up and moving. Ellis was the only one down at the moment, but the mechanic had a way of bouncing back quickly. With the added strength of the three infected among them, they could move at a good clip. The only problem was where to go to. He hadn't heard of any rescue operations in the swamps, and the sign outside the town that declared that neither the military nor CEDA was allowed there suggested that they had to formulate a plan as they went.

However, the earlier conversation with Matthew did provide a lead. If they could somehow get to Matthew's home, they would have a place to temporarily rest and come up with ideas, they seemed to come easier when you weren't running for your life. " Matthew, if it's okay, may we go to your house?" he asked. " We all need a place to rest, to think of where we're going next."

Matthew thought about it, nodding. " Bit of a walk, we might not get there in just a day or so... but it's better than nothin', right?" Coach nodded, everyone sitting in the traincar silently, waiting for Ellis to wake up so they could get moving.

When it became too silent, Chad decided to talk just for the sake of things. " So... how on earth did you end up as a Spitter, Matthew? And how does it even work?"

Matthew let out a startled noise, having not been prepared for that. " Eh? Oh.. well, both men and women can be turned, right? But some become other things than just th' regular, right? I've always had stomach troubles... so I guess after the infection got in me, it built on that n' made me a Spitter. As for how it works, it's painful."

Chad look interested in that, making a curious noise as Matthew continued on. " I have to eat somethin' first and then using the acid's like forcin' y'self to throw up. Isn't comfy at all. If I don't use it though, I end up with a stomachache. So sometimes, I eat, and sometimes, I don't."

" You were eating earlier, is it gonna be allright?" Sion asked, Matthew nodding. " Wanna be ready, it's a bit of a walk to the house." he replied.

" Can you still do it even if you haven't eaten?" Chad asked, genuinely curious. " Because if you get caught by a horde, it's hard to get you out if you only have one shot."

" I can use it, but it hurts." Matthew confirmed for him. " Ain't easy on those of us that look human."

Chad took out his notebook, working on a new sheet of paper." What are you working on?" Coach asked, sitting beside him. " Oh, I've been keeping a record of everything's that happened." Chad explained. " I also make detailed notes on the infected as I learn more."

" Why do you keep notes on that?" Ellis asked sleepily, having woken up in the middle of the conversation.

Chad patted his notebook. " Because the more I learn, the better prepared I am. Plus... I think that only a select few people know about what the infected are really like, their behaviors, mannerisms, it's important to share that knowledge."

" Fat load of good it's doing right now," Nick commented, waving one arm. " Take a good look around, this look like a camp to you?"

Chad ignored him and continued on. " We've lived through this, we know what to do, people who've been in camps since day one don't. If and when we make it to a camp... I want to share this information so people can have a better chance." he turned it to a dog-eared page, turning the pages carefully. " This page at the very least, is the most important to me."

" Who's on that page?" Ellis asked, trying to sit up to get a look, Rochelle making him lay back down.

" The Shooter." Chad answered, turning the notebook so Ellis could look at it. " Possibly one of the most elusive of the infected... I see more witches then them." He ran his finger over the rough drawing. " I can't figure out the conditions for their infection, since their ages and sizes have several inconsistencies. The northern variety is smaller than the southern, but the northern ones are practically twice as tenacious when it comes to chasing prey. Southern ones are ... lazy."

" Lazy? Bullshit." Nick snorted. " You remember the one in the tunnel? You tell me if that was being lazy."

Chad gave him a worried look, turning the page. " That's the thing. It WAS being lazy." he said, sighing deeply. " When Coach woke it up, it startled both him and Ellis into running, the natural response, but they left Rochelle behind on accident, thus making her a lone target. Shooters never attack a target unless it is being assaulted or alone. The Shooter that we fought at the facility before we headed south... it attacked during a horde. The one in the forest, it attacked during a Tank attack. The one on the stage, it attacked after we set off the concert and was in a mad dash to the helicopter. It fits, it's an opportunity predator. It won't fight if it thinks that it's too much work."

He flipped the notebook earlier. " One has never attacked us when we were all together and watching our backs, we'd be too hard to take down and it's not worth the effort. Instead," he closed the notebook and set three shell casings on it, moving them apart from each other. " It waits for the horde or another special infected to do it's dirty work. Separation by the horde or a Tank, doesn't matter, it's an opportunity."

He slid the shells back onto the floor. " It takes advantage of our weakest moments to gain easy prey."

Coach let out an impressed whistle. " I'm impressed, you found all of that out from your different encounters?"

Chad nodded proudly. " Encounters and intuition. I learned a lot of other stuff from them too, they seem to produce a sort of paralyzing agent and that coats the spines thinly, which is why after being hit with one, it slows you down after a while. It takes away the adrenaline response. When you're in an adrenaline rush, you move faster, the spines take you back to a normal state, slowing you down for a hopeful capture."

" All fascinating, but anything on how to bring them down?" Nick said, a bored tone in his voice. " That's the only thing that really matters at the end of the day."

" They'll go down just as easily as any Charger, you just have to shoot them in the head and chest." Chad pointed at the locations. " They have spines, but it doesn't cover the middle of their chests, stomach and head. Pretty much anywhere they can have hair is where spines are."

" Oh? Everywhere?" Nick smirked. " What about dow-"

" Don't even finish that, Nick." Rochelle said with a groan.

"..._Do they?" _Ark asked, looking at Sion, who covered his face with a groan.

* * *

Innuendo joke for the win, I guess. Came up in a random conversation, had to use it. Not really big on making such silly jokes though. Anyways, got the ball rolling again, should be another chapter really soon, I want to get through swamp fever ASAP, I hate the campaign and everything in it. Reviews are loved, flames make toasted marshmallow~

-Ciao~


	36. Toy

Chapter 36: Toy

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead 1 or 2

* * *

Once Ellis was up and active, they set out, Ark taking his usual stance to sniff out various items, Sion walking behind him. Since their weaponry had taken a hit from the crash and were practically useless or missing, they were stuck using the weapons that they could find, which sad to say, wasn't much.

" At least these backwater people out here knew to stock extra ammunition for their shotguns..." Nick grumbled, reloading the shotgun he found, Rochelle sighing.

" For once, I'm in agreement with Nick." Rochelle said, stepping over a body. " This place is... creeping me out. I'm grateful for the extra ammunition."

Matthew let out a soft noise, walking with his head down, gingerly stepping around bodies. " Hey, zombies aren't on the ground unless they're dead, keep your head up." Nick said to him, Matthew lifting his head softly.

" M' sorry, it's jus' that I knew most of these people..." he said softly, watching a common get gunned down. " It hurts t' see them all like this, knowing that I'm the only one out of all of them who knows who I am."

Rochelle let out a soft noise, gently touching Matthew's shoulder. ' I'm sorry, Matthew... this must have been a wonderful place before the infection came here."

Matthew gave her a gentle smile, nodding. " It was... but we gotta keep moving." he said, wiping at his face before moving on. Ark couldn't help but admire Matthew's strong will, if he had seen infected versions of Zoey and the others... he would be bawling his head off trying to get them to respond to him. Turning to focus back on the situation, he made a noise and broke off from the trail, having smelled alcohol. It wasn't like he was expecting to find Francis at the end of it, but past experience told him that any alcohol bottles can be used to make Molotovs.

Creeping into a house, he stepped past a torn up body to find a already prepared Molotov, tilting his head curiously before picking it up, finding a few other discarded alcohol bottles, bringing them back. Coach looked pleased with his find, but it still left him wondering where on earth the Molotov had come from in the first place.

He decided to let it go for now, focusing on the task at hand, sitting in a crouching position as Coach examined the ferry system. " Well, it's on the other side... we'll have to bring it over here." The bigger man said, sighing.

" Why is it never on the side we NEED it on?" Nick snapped, glaring at the ferry on the other side as if his current hatred of it would make it move. " I swear, every time we need to move something or call something to us, it's somewhere we DON'T need it to be! Someone clearly gets off on fucking with us like this."

Rochelle put her hands on her hips. " If your griping was energy, the ferry would have been here and back a dozen times and you'd still have enough energy left to face a Tank."

" What can I say, it keeps going and going and going..." Nick bounced back quickly, Coach covering his face and groaning again, Matthew walking over to the lever and pulling it with a little effort, everyone looking at him when the sound rose to a noticeable level and the horde cried out.

" What? We gotta get across anyhow, might as well get it over with." Matthew said, gearing up to fight.

" Man's gotta point, let's get this show on the road!" Coach said, turning to face the horde while Nick gave the Spitter a death glare.

* * *

Once the horde had been mopped up, having extra hands made the fight easier, the group stumbled on their newest dilemma. With the size of their group, it would be hard to fit everyone on at once. " Well if this isn't a fine..." Sion began, looking at the small ferry. " I'm not starting a damn horde again to make two trips..."

Matthew thought on it. " I know how Ark can get across..." he said, pointing at the top of the ferry. " 'bout halfway there, he can leap on top and then leap to the other shore. S' better than trying to leap the whole thing."

" That's all well and good, but how are you and I going to get across?" Sion said, pointing across the river. " Smokers and Spitters aren't exactly renowned for their jumping talents."

" Maybe you could use your tongue somehow?" Matthew asked. " Snag a branch on the other side and leap across?"

" Physics and gravity say otherwise, I'd be treading water, and who knows what's in there." Sion said, opening his mouth and letting his tongue come out a bit. " Besides, some of the branches over there don't look stable."

" If we all stand or sit on the benches, we could fit more people..." Ellis interjected into the conversation. " It was meant to take small tours across the river, so we could manage it... dunno on how much weight the rickety thing could hold though..."

Matthew looked at Ellis, smiling. " It's okay, we'll manage. You guys take it across and then send it back, we'll be fine. Besides, we just mopped up some... ain't like these guys respawn for a repeat appearance."

Coach nodded, getting on the ferry, Ellis laying on the bench. " We'll send it back across, just be careful until it comes back."

Rochelle and Nick boarded as well, Chad looking hesitant before getting on as well, the ferry taking them across slowly. Ark stayed put, not wanting to snap a cable or something by leaping onto the ferry, watching the group as they went across.

" _Think they'll send it back for us?" _He asked, looking up at Sion, who nodded.

" _I trust Coach to keep his word." _Sion said, squinting his eyes. " _We have to trust each other, it's the only way for humans and us infected to build any sort of bond."_

" I get what y' two are sayin, but could ya do it in English please?" Matthew asked, cleaning one ear out. " I can't really speak all that infected mumbo-jumbo."

Sion nodded softly. " We'll try to speak normal, okay?" he said softly.

Matthew jumped slightly as the ferry came back, creaking slowly as it progressed towards them, all three infected silently getting on the ferry. Once they got across, Ellis cheerfully greeted them, Sion managing a smile.

" Let's hurry along." Coach said, gesturing to the walkways. " Make sure everyone watches their step."

" You should go last Coach..." Nick said, walking past him. " You know, make sure everyone's safe by making sure the rear is guarded. Not to mention if the walkway falls, we'll already be across." he added at the end, Coach letting out a disapproving snort.

" Shouldn't the ass be guarding the rear? After all, it's the same?" Sion said with a cocky grin, Nick shooting him a nasty glare while Ellis and Ark snickered together.

" Actually, can we rest for a while in that last house?" Matthew said suddenly, pointing out a nearby home. " It's gonna rain soon, and those walkways aren't stable when they're wet."

Coach had been about to ask why, but seeing Matthew's face made him sigh. " Alright, we'll camp in there until the rain get's light or it stops. No reason to put ourselves in further danger." he finally agreed. Upon reaching the house, everyone filed in, Matthew going into the back room and then leaving, mumbling faintly about going to rest outside.

"What is he, bipolar? Wanted to go inside to avoid the rain, going back outside like an indecisive mutt that doesn't know if he wants in or out?" Nick asked, looking around. " And to top it off, why is he going right back outside? He was so damn eager to get in here... " He seemed to run out of steam for arguing, instead walking off to go search for supplies inside the house.

Rochelle shrugged. " I don't know, he took a similar hit to me in the helicopter, perhaps his headache hasn't gone away? " she offered just to try and soothe Nick, Ellis getting up and grabbing his shotgun.

" Well, we've all got our reasons, but I'm gonna keep him company while he rests, k?" Ellis said, going outside, moving quickly to go look for him. "Ain't no point in getting snagged for stupid reasons."

" Enjoy your redneck bonding." Nick said dryly, turning back to cleaning out his pistols, having found nothing of interest. Sion and Ark just exchanged glances and sat there in silence, watching the scenery as Ellis searched for Matthew outside.

" Do you think something happened?" Ark asked Sion quietly. " Matthew was pale when he left..."

Sion gently patted Ark's head. " Sometimes... things need to be done that you can't let anyone else see." he said, casting a glance at the furthest room, gently extending his tongue, snaring the doorknob and closing the door.

* * *

" Matthew!" Ellis called, trying to be quiet. " Matthew, where are ya? Christ, don't tell me ya got snagged when nobody was lookin..." he said, searching the nearby area. He tensed up when he heard sniffling and crying, his mind instantly screaming Witch before collecting itself. The sobs and hiccups sounded deeper, more masculine. " I ain't never heard of no male Witch..." Ellis mumbled, creeping around the side of the other house that was nearby, having stopped in it to search for Matthew. There was a crouched form beside the house, another sob escaping it, along with the sounds of scratching, the mechanic tensing with a sharp gasp, afraid that whatever was there had heard him.

Fear tore through Ellis's nerves almost instantly, if it was a Witch, he could avoid it by running away right now, but curiosity got the better of him and he had to take a look. Damn his inquisitive nature sometimes. It took him all but two seconds to realize it was Matthew, moving forward a bit before stopping, watching Matthew's shoulders shake. " Matt?" he asked softly, mentally smacking himself for being scared in the first place. " Matthew?"

Matthew stopped quaking, turning around slightly to look at Ellis, his face tear stained. " Oh... h-hi..." he said, wiping his face.

" If ya needed to cry, you didn't have to run all the way out here..." Ellis said, stopping when he saw that Matthew's hands were caked in fresh dirt. " Whatcha doing out here anyways?" he asked.

Matthew said nothing, stepping aside slowly, revealing a small hole that had been dug by hand, hanging his head. " Ya trying to dig a grave?" Ellis asked, Matthew nodding slowly. " It's such a small grave, what are you trying to bury..." Ellis's words died in his throat when Matthew reached into the nearby bushes and pulled out a once new teddy bear, holding it delicately in his clawed hands. A bit of blood stained the bear's left eye, and the words printed on it's once white belly read " It's a Boy!" in a delicate cursive, the bear holding a torn picture of an ultrasound.

Matthew's hands and voice shook as he spoke. " ….t-the family in that house... t-they were so nice to me an m' brother all the time...They were waiting... she was due about now..." the Spitter's voice died as more tears spilled from his eyes. " N-never stood a chance..."

Ellis looked up at Matthew, watching the man cry. Such a close-knit neighborhood... gone in an instant because of the infection, not even the littlest was spared. Yet, here was Matthew, a carrier of the disease that tore his whole world from him. To be able to smile, even when everything you knew and loved was gone... even the strongest of men would break eventually. And then, there were those who never got a chance...

" I... I can't bury them all..." Matthew finally said, breaking the silence. " This is all I can do... all I can do..." he hated being seen like this, he knew he was more emotional than his brother, but that family had been so kind to the both of them... it had been their second home. He could remember spending days in the house, helping to cook and clean since the family living there was kind enough to help out when they themselves were having problems. Seeing the picture had given him joy in the beginning, now it left a scalding pit in his stomach and a hole in his heart that refused to heal.

Ellis took off his cap, laying it on the ground beside the house, wordlessly pointing at the hole that had been dug. Thankfully, Matthew seemed to understand and placed the stuffed toy in the hole, the mechanic kneeling to help cover the toy with dirt. Clawed hands, ridden with the infection, human hands, tainted with the blood of those killed... both worked effortlessly to cover the toy, belonging to one of the infection's smallest victims. Once it was over, Matthew slumped against the side of the house, still sniffling and curling in on himself, Ellis looking up at the sky, watching a droplet fall from the cloudy sky onto the small mound.

The rain that followed came from several sources, all flowing onto the earth below.

* * *

"Dare I ask why you two were out in the rain?" Nick said, one eyebrow raised slowly as Ellis came in, wringing his cap out. Rochelle immediately came to Ellis's side, offering one of the towels that she had found in a box, giving another to Matthew, who was still sporting a terminally depressed look.

" Found a path along the walkway's that's pretty sturdy!" Ellis chirped, toweling off his hair. " It's a bit winding, but as long as we stay dry, right?"

" Which you two clearly didn't do." Sion said, getting up and taking Ellis's shotgun from him, wiping it down with his sleeve. " So... how does the weather look outside? Rain going to let up soon?"

Matthew nodded. " This is one of the smaller rainstorms... should be gone within two hours." he said, wiping his face off and then giving them a cheery smile, attempting to return to his usual sunny mood.

Coach made a noise. " Guess we can let those two sleep in a bit more." he said, gesturing over to Ark and Chad, both curled up in the corners, out cold. Sion nodded softly, handing Ellis's gun back to him and settling back against the wall. Nick seemed to have little or no interest in interacting with them at the moment, and was relaxing in the corner of the room, laying on one side with his arm tucked underneath his head. Judging by the lack of noise coming from his direction though, he was either half-asleep, or not paying them any attention.

Sion sighed and gently nudged Ark with his shoe. " C'mon, Lazy. Up and at 'em." he said blankly, nudging Ark until the hunter sleepily batted at his shoe with a claw. " It's your turn for watch." he finished, Ark groaning and getting to his feet, stretching to try and shake some of the sleep from his body. After about three minutes of stretching, he stumbled over to where Sion was, the smoker chuckling softly and redirecting Ark to the safehouse door.

Ark mumbled faintly and made his way over to the door, not entirely awake just yet, Rochelle gently elbowing Ellis and gesturing to the half-asleep Hunter. " Braaaainnns." she said in a low moan, Ellis chuckling alongside her as Ark oozed his way up the door to take watch.

* * *

" Damnit, landed in the water again!" a sharp curse sounded out after a particularly loud splash was heard, a few snickers wafting through the air as well.

" Try not walking on the areas with mud, yes?" a second voice blankly said, the tone holding amusement as well as disdain.

" Shut up you, the only reason we're here is because of that damned tank and his buddies." the first voice barked, an annoyed tone in his voice.

" That is not my concern." the second voice droned.

" Why you-" the first voice geared up for a slew of insults, a younger and decidedly feminine voice cut in before it happened.

" Guys! Let's not fight, okay?"

" …... I hate swamps." the first voice grumbled, defeated.

* * *

End Chapter 36

Bit of a nowhere chapter, really, but I wanted to convey that while they are all managing to survive in their own way, there are many who didn't make it. Or in some cases, never had a chance. It also gave me a chance to help build on bonding in their own ways, while Nick just continues to be an ass. Sorry for Ark not being really active in the chapter, he'll get back into the swing of things asap.

On other related news, I now have a tumblr set up for both Ark, Sion, Desert, and Matthew. My sister does all the artwork that I hope to post soon, you can find their profile link on my profile. I also now have left 4 dead 2 on Steam, come play with me, I'm ChibiHunterArk on the computer or Gamertwins002 on the xbox live. I don't bite~...

Ciao~


	37. Plane

Chapter 37: Plane

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead 2

* * *

" See anything noteworthy?" Sion asked once Ark was up, the Hunter shaking his head. All he had been seeing for the last half hour was swamp, infected, and as a bonus, more swamp. Sighing, he slumped against the door, rubbing his forehead gently. The heat in the room was offset by the constant airflow between the bars, but having seven people in the room at once was still a tad unsettling.

" Not a thing." he finally answered, looking up at Sion. " Not even a bird or bug."

Sion put one hand on his hip. " Well, let's hope that serenity lasts, we're getting ready to go." he said, gesturing back to the others. Rochelle was gently nudging Nick, who groaned and rolled onto his side, pushing himself up with the aid of his arms while Ellis attempted to fill the silence with one of his many Keith stories.

" My buddy Keith once tried building a house out of mud and stuff, didn't work out the way he hoped-"

" Does he ever stop talking?" Nick asked, getting to his feet and brushing himself off.

" Who knows?" Sion said, smiling a bit in amusement. Ellis was just being his usual rambunctious self, who was he to interfere? Besides, it reminded him of Ark.

Ark nodded and nudged the door open, the group setting out again. Thanks to the rest they all had, everything seemed clearer, and Ark was able to start examining all of the scents in the air. There was the usual scents of the infected, followed by the scent of the survivors, various smells mixed together. Coach smelled faintly of sweets, while Ellis's smell was loosing it's motor oil scent. Nick had a fading cologne scent about him, and Rochelle faintly smelled of fading perfume. All signs that none of them had even remotely considered the idea that their lives would be in constant jeopardy now.

The Hunter sighed as they walked across the walkways, trying to piece the memories of his past together. Who was he? Was he someone he would be proud of, or was this a new start for him? Did he have family? Sighing again, he looked over at Sion. " Hey, Sion?" he asked softly.

" Yeah?" the smoker asked softly. " What is it?"

" Do you ever try to remember?" he asked. " I mean, who you once was?"

" Never have." Sion replied swiftly and without much thought. " I like who I am."

" You never curious about it?" Ark asked, genuinely curious.

Sion shook his head. " Nope. I don't dwell on that I have no control over." he said softly. " I can't remember who I was, so I don't worry on it. Worrying only makes you feel worse."

Ark had never thought of it that way, but understood the wisdom in the Smoker's words. " Oh... well, thanks for answering." he said finally.

Sion smiled back at him before his skin crawled as they heard giggles, the group instinctively huddling together. " ...God I hate Jockeys..." Rochelle said, everyone silently agreeing with her as the laughing got closer before dying out with a loud squeak.

" …. Did something else get it?" Ellis asked, looking at the others, still tense but calming down.

" Who knows, but let's get out of here before whatever did shows up." Nick said, Coach moving to the next walkway.

Ark looked out at the walkway before leaping gracefully into the nearby tree to look around, scampering through the branches with grace and ease. Being a Hunter had it's advantages, like increased strength and speed when it came to jumping and climbing things. Ellis watched with faint twinges of envy, but continued along the walkway. Chad, who had been quiet the whole time, simply looked on with faint apprehension of the whole situation, never one to be at ease when it was quiet.

" Something's wrong." he said finally, Ark stopping to look at him.

" What?" the Hunter replied, Chad pulling his gun closer to him.

" It's too quiet... I haven't seen any infected for minutes." Chad said, Rochelle looking at him. " But that's a good thing, we don't waste anymore ammunition..."

" If all the piranha's scatter, there's a shark." Nick said, growing nervous. " No common infected? Tank or something else."

" And today gets even better." Rochelle sighed, starting to look around for anything unusual.

" Not so loud everyone... we just need to stick together." Coach said, trying to lift their spirits somewhat. " As long as we stick together, we'll make it through this."

" Famous last words..." Nick said, heading into the nearby clearing, Ark leaping overhead to the next tree, snapping a branch. He was hit by the smell of a decaying corpse, gagging slightly as the smell overpowered him, stepping on another rotting branch and sending it crashing to the ground.

As he tumbled to the ground, so did a rotting corpse of a parachutist, the decomposing body landing on Nick, who happened to be examining it at the same time, Ellis wondering where on earth the guy had come from.

The effect was next to instantaneous, Nick created a huge racket trying to escape out from underneath the corpse. He had never been one to freak out over stupid little things, but when the corpse landed on him, a CORPSE, his thought process sort of derailed and headed off to go find a map, never returning. The cords of the parachute were getting tangled around his legs and the smell was everywhere, 100 percent offensive to 3 of the 5 senses, and he wanted it off.

In his mad dash to get out from out of his current situation, he brought both legs up and kicked the corpse off him, reaching down and tearing the cords from around his legs and getting up, his spine and skin crawling as he moved away from the corpse on the ground, green eyes feral. The second his mind managed to repair itself, he shot a glare into the trees, Ark yelping and moving out of sight.

" I guess we can safely say it's a good thing that there are no infected around." Rochelle said, looking at Nick. " Because right about now, we'd be swarmed with infected alerted by the racket you were making, Nick."

Nick took in a deep breath, smoothing his suit with one hand. " Laugh it up if you will... let's just keep moving." his feathers were clearly ruffled, and it would take a good deal of coaxing to get him to calm down. Ellis thought about telling a funny story to ease his nerves, but sighed when Coach softly shook his head, taking his boot to nudge aside the corpse somewhat, making a noise. " Hrm? What's this?"

" Unless it's a jet to get us outta here, I am NOT interested." Nick hissed.

Ellis nudged out a notebook, the cover stained with blood. " Think he mighta been a reporter?" he asked, Chad going over to him. " Here, let me see." the older man said.

The medic took the notebook, holding it gingerly before cracking it open, looking at the contents. " …. It seems to be notes on the infected... perhaps he was studying this so he would be prepared upon landing?"

" Fat load of good it did him." Nick commented, still ruffled.

Chad rolled his eyes for a brief moment. " Settle down." he continued flipping through the pages. " Yup... Jockey, Charger... Spitter... they're all here. Detailed notes about what to listen for and what to do."

" Why'd he have it?" Coach asked, giving the notebook a critical look, not fully comfortable with the situation. " I would think word of mouth is a bit easier."

Chad put the journal away. " True... I'll look at it more when we have the time." he said, grabbing his gun. " Now, unless someone wants the dead man's things, I suggest we keep moving."

Coach offered a brief prayer to the corpse before gently nudging the M-16 out of the pale hands, checking the ammunition on it. " Never pegged you as the looting type." Nick said, one hand dangling at his side while the other seemed busy with memorizing the grooves of the magnum he possessed." Always figured you were the " Leave it alone, dead man's curse" sort of thing."

Coach gave Nick a sad smile. " I know that he ain't sufferin' no more... and I asked if I could use it, because right now, I need it more than he does. I know he'll understand." the bigger man seemed satisfied with the ammunition that had been stashed in the pockets, securing them as well, offering a Molotov and a bottle of painkillers to Sion, who mutely accepted. " Thank you, friend, you've helped us a lot today." Coach apologized to the corpse, lingering there a few minutes, Rochelle and Ellis doing the same.

" Please tell me you aren't waiting for a "You're welcome," because I don't think you're getting one." Nick said, a smirk on his lips.

" Tell me, is there a class you take to be an asshole?" Sion asked, massaging his forehead. " If there is, I KNOW you graduated with full honors."

" I've always been head of the class in what I do." Nick didn't miss a beat, Chad and Ark both sharing looks before sighing.

Wordlessly, Coach set out on the path again, everyone falling into line behind him, save for Ark in the trees. Since he was high up, he got a pretty good idea of what the area looked like ahead, and shouted down what information he could, scanning the trees for threats. One thing did bother Ark though as he traveled through the treeline, several trunks had been scratched deeply with large claws, the marks painfully visible. Someone had traveled through there before they had... and was either marking a trail or simply attacking things in a fit of rage. Sighing, he leapt onto another sturdy branch, sitting there for a moment as the crew evaluated their newest discovery... a downed plane.

* * *

" Think zombies brought down this plane?" Ellis asked nervously, looking at the others. " Good lord...a whole goddamned plane?"

" Something brought it down, that's for sure." Coach said, looking at the wreckage. " Can't say for sure what it was."

" All I know is it probably brought a shit-ton of zombies into our area... they don't seem to die from long falls." Nick grumbled. " Except for that one time Coach fell on one and it died from the impact."

Coach gave him a sour look. " All in favor of Nick leading the search into the plane?"

Ellis seemed to be the only one who didn't say " Aye," Nick giving them all an exasperated look as he was forced to take point. His nerves were already shot from the incident with the corpse, and he had no earthly desire to repeat that fiasco inside the plane, sloshing his way through the water. Several things pissed him off as it was, having to go through swamp water that practically was knee high at some points, infected rampages, travel with unintellectual beings... Ellis was a single-cell organism in his mind at the moment, so he didn't count. Coach was a dual-cell, which wasn't any better.

And then there was the subject of the infected they were traveling with...personality wise they were harmless, but they still posed a huge threat to all of their well being. He had mixed feelings about everything, but survival was still his top priority.

A loud splash from beside him had him whirling to face the infected attacking him, spluttering as mud was splattered across his face, panic rising again as he tried to shove the infected away from him. Reacting quickly, Ark leapt from the tree onto the mud-covered infected, biting it's shoulder and tearing into it with his claws.

" Tell me I did not just see a mud-man!" Ellis said in disbelief, Nick coughing and sputtering.

" No, you saw Santa Claus!"He shot back, wiping the mud from his eyes and spluttering again while trying to get the mud off his face completely.

" Stop teasing that boy." Rochelle sighed, looking around before stepping back to look up at the plane. " Hrm... How are we going to get through here safely..." she mused, looking through the wreckage.

" We could blow the door of the safety hatch," Coach began, pointing it out. " Easiest method, but it'll call infected for quite a distance."

" Any plan b?" Nick asked, looking at the hatch with disdain. " Because ammunition is isn't easy to come by in a swamp, save for shotgun ammo. Rednecks around here can't seem to keep anything else."

" Usually a shotgun's enough to get most things offa our porches." Matthew replied. " Unless it's a gator or somethin', then y' need somethin' a lil' bigger."

" You know, I never asked, but where did you live around here?" Rochelle asked. " You know the area pretty well."

Matthew pointed at the plane. " That's the only thing messin' with m' map of the area, but I used t' live in the plantation homes further up ahead. Our family's been here for generations. If there's any sort of rescue t' be had in this area, it's there."

" How far is it?" Chad asked, looking at the wreckage to see if he could squeeze his way through it, not liking all the sharp metal he was seeing.

" If we have a good pace, maybe tomorrow morning we'll get there?" Matthew said. " Or tomorrow evening, if we get held up by somethin'."

" Sounds like a plan to me." Coach said. " Now, let's blow this hatch and get things started."

" We're not going to vote on this?" Nick said with a sarcastic tone.

" No."

* * *

Once the hatch was blown, all hell broke loose.

Ark couldn't believe how much infected swarmed once the door was blown, and the mud wasn't making anything easier for him. Like the rest, it bogged him down, and pouncing provided only temporary relief. To make his luck even worse, all of the infected that could attack from a distance, like Spitters and Smokers, seemed content with assaulting the survivors from hard to reach locations. Matthew was unable to keep up with the fully infected variety of himself, simply because it was too taxing to try and spit every so often, his body makeup wouldn't allow it. To combat that issue, Chad gave him his pistols and had him watch the rear.

Ellis was taking most of the damage, having to defend the front while Rochelle and Nick frantically searched the back for some ammunition or something to stall the horde with, Rochelle locating a molotov. " Hey, Nick!" she said, holding it up. " This should help!"

Nick's shoulders slumped a bit. " Ro...either you toss that thing in here and burn us all up WITH the zombies, or you toss it outside in SWAMP WATER and get no zombies." he said in a careful voice, Rochelle analyzing his words for a second before slapping her face.

" Next time I have an amazing thought... tell me to let it go." she sighed.

" Will do, sweetheart." Nick said with a chuckle, ducking as an infected smashed the side window. " SHIT!"

He ducked down and fired at the head trying to get through the hole, glass raining down on his head somewhat as he grimaced, one arm wrapped around his neck to make sure nothing was going to hit it. Rochelle was lucky enough to keep out of the way, but most of the damage was already done, infected were trying to get their hands through the windows now.

" You must be a celebrity, those boys are dying to get a glimpse of you." Nick drawled with an amused smirk on his face, watching Rochelle hit one of the hands away with her pistol.

" Very funny, Nick... now help me out here!" Rochelle strained to keep her voice even. Nick allowed his moment of amusement to end, rushing over to her and opening fire on the heads in the windows. That was the great thing about them, there was little room for error, and only the blind could miss.

Helping Rochelle to her feet, both turned with an alarmed noise as they heard Ellis cry " I'm down!" along with a few terrified screams. " What found him, a Jockey?" Nick mumbled as the two scrambled over the slanted seats to find their teammate.

Coach was having a fiasco of his own, straining to reach Ellis but unable to, thanks to the repeated globs of acid being flung in his general direction. He hated it when Spitters had a bead on one of them, because the acid spitting monsters seemed to have a personal vendetta with whomever they targeted. It just happened to be his lucky day. Matthew seemed to be having little or no trouble with the acid, at some points practically standing in it without appearing the least bit harmed, a small fact Coach cursed silently at.

" Where's everyone?" he asked, ducking as another glob came flying at the two. " Matthew, can y' see them all?"

Matthew was scanning the field, nodding. " Ellis is outside, and quite a few people are tryin' t reach him, I see Nick, Ro', Chad n' Ark. Sion's tryin t' get close t' that Spitter, n' you and I are here, tryin' t' lessen the horde."

Coach sighed, hearing Rochelle gently helping Ellis to his feet, if the boy's grunts of pain were anything to go by. " Once they get up here, we make a break for the safehouse."

Matthew nodded. " Yes, sir."

" Ya'll... ya'll, I'm hurt..." Ellis whimpered, holding his side tightly. Blood stained the mechanic's clothing, and his eyes were clearly showing the amount of pain he was in. Rochelle was apologizing over and over to him, wishing she had got there sooner to help him, Ark whining softly as he looked at the damage.

" It can't be that far to the next safehouse... who has what in terms of health supplies?" Nick said with genuine concern in his voice.

" I think I have a health kit..." Rochelle said, checking her supplies. " Yeah, but it's just the one. We'd have to see what Coach and Matthew have.

" Isn't much, m' afraid." Matthew said, dropping down beside them. " Coach n' I had t' use our supplies while trackin' the Spitter. Sion got the Smoker though." he said softly.

Chad came over with his bag, motioning that they should help Ellis up onto the deck of the plane, the group managing to settle in the slanted seats, watching with worry as Chad examined Ellis's wounds. " … it's pretty bad. Fixable, but bad... you're staying out of zombie-hunting for a bit." he told Ellis, the mechanic weakly smiling.

" Aw... but that's m' new favorite sport!" he joked weakly.

Chad chuckled in reply, gently cleaning the wound. " Even top athletes need a break." he said, dipping one hand into his bag for more supplies.

" Ya'll get him cleaned up," Matthew said. " I'm gonna re-get m' bearings, so I can find th' way home." he said, dropping down. " I'll be back in a lil while..." he said, walking off.

" Why does he disappear so much?" Nick groaned, massaging his aching legs. No one had an answer for him, instead watching the bleeding mechanic, and the medic working to put him back together.

* * *

Matthew walked out some distance before looking up into the trees. " Alexander... get down here." he said coldly, the nearby tree branches rattling softly as a large Hunter landed, shaking himself off slightly. He wore a dark red sweatshirt, pulled up over his face, same as all the other Hunters.

" Surprised you remember your dear friend..." the Hunter growled softly. " I'm even more surprised you didn't sell me out to the humans."

" You're not worth it." Matthew retorted. " Now... what's going on here? I was attacked at the carnival... by your former co-worker."

" What can I say? We've always had a... good working relationship." Alexander said, a smirk displayed on his lips, showing bloodstained teeth. " I'd show him up, he'd try to show me up."

Matthew grabbed Alexander's collar, tugging his towards his face, seeing as how Alexander was a far cry bigger than him, standing over him at 6'5. " This isn't funny, Alex! That' makes twice now that I've been nearly killed by your friend's idiot grudge!"

" You and your brother are so alike."Alexander replied calmly. " Save for the fact that your accent disappears when you're upset, and your brother's accent appears."

" Keep testing me." Matthew hissed. " And I'll give you a matching burn on your other arm." he said in reference the the acid burn running up Alexander's left arm, the beginnings of the burn visible on his exposed hand.

Alexander let out a defeated sigh. " You two are no fun to play with. You want information? Fine. If you're looking for evacuation, head past your plantation home and go further down the road to the one that overlooks the river, there's a man there named Virgil, he's still ferrying people who can reach him out of the area. Where he takes them, I have no idea."

Matthew released the Hunter. " Not the information I needed, but thank you nonetheless."

Alexander rolled his eyes. " If you're asking me for my time, I can pencil you in for 10:30 on Wednesday." he ducked as a glob of acid flew at his head. " Touchy..."

Matthew wiped his mouth off. " What are y' doing here in the swamps? You know this is our territory..." he questioned.

Alexander smirked, waving one claw. " Word on the playground is that a group of survivors is trying to come through here. I figured I'd... check them out a little, see how well one bleeds."

" Not a chance in hell, I'll burn you." Matthew snapped. " Leave them alone, don't y' got bigger fish to fry... like findin' y' kid before y' coworker does?"

It was Alexander's turn to hiss, one thick clawed hand grabbing Matthew's collar and hoisting him up. " If my son is dead... you AND your brother will suffer. Along with the humans and any other thing I can get my claws on." he whispered. " It's not a threat, it's a promise."

Matthew made sure he could still breath before replying. " Then you had best get back on to looking for him... and leave us alone."

Alexander glared at him for a full minute before throwing Matthew to the ground, walking off. " You're too soft... relying on humans when all they do is take from others and kill us." he said, glaring back at Matthew with red eyes. " Put too much trust in them... all they will do is let you down. Mark my words." once he was done talking, the large Hunter leapt back into the trees and soon disappeared into the swamps, Matthew slowly picking himself up from the ground.

" Crazy fool... they're the only chance we got of bein' normal again." the Spitter sighed, brushing himself off and going around to finish mapping the area.

* * *

End Chapter 37

A big thank you for those who played swamp fever with me and helped me look around the area. I got some great views of the place. Unfortunately, I also got some unwanted attention from the twin tanks at the finale... such is life. Anyways, the chapter helped me to build a little more on the downtime in between horde fighting, as well as create new questions to ask.

In other news, Ark's Tumblr is active, come check it out and ask him some questions! You can ask without having to log in, just come take a look! His profile's on my profile page, come spam my inbox!

reviews are appreciated, Ciao~


	38. Reunion

Chapter 38: Reunion

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead 2

* * *

Matthew soon finished his map of the area, sighing deeply as he returned to the others, looking to see how the group was faring. Chad had finished with bandaging Ellis's wounds, and the mechanic was resting peacefully on the side of the deck, eyes closed in a fitful slumber. Coach, Rochelle, and Nick looked on, worry crossing each of their faces, some more than others.

" Will he be okay?" Rochelle asked Chad, who was busy putting everything back into his bag. " I mean... can he still fight?"

Chad nodded. " Not right now, but if we give him a day's rest... maybe. It all depends on the extent of the damage received. Right now though... not a chance."

" Well, if this isn't going to hell in a hand basket, I don't know what is." Nick sighed, checking the ammunition on his gun. " How far is it until the next safehouse?" he groaned, a small complaint in his voice.

" I don't know, but getting pissy about it isn't helping the situation!" Sion snapped back, lounging against a chair. " Seriously, getting evacuated shouldn't be this hard..."

Chad shrugged in reply, scratching at the side of his head. " It's hard, trying to get evac'd. So many things go wrong so easily... the rescue at the carnival, the rescue at the camp..." he said softly.

" The rescue at the Hospital, the rescues in general..." Ark added with a small sigh.

" Well, no reason to get all upset about everythin'!" Matthew said, climbing back up onto the damaged portion of the plane. " Point is, y' gotta live life to the fullest, and being depressed all the time isn't helping." his cheerful grin managed to bring some people's moods up, some went plummeting even further.

Chad's shoulder's slumped. " Well, sometimes, being happy is too damn hard." he said, sighing.

" I can agree with him there..." Nick said. " I'm sick and tired of being sick and tired. Do you have any idea how long it's been since we've last had a decent night's rest, good food, and a damned shower? Someone up there is really messing with us, because this hurts! There are times where I wonder if we haven't switched places with hell."

Sion scratched his chin softly. " No point in throwing multiple fits though... what is, is, and what will be, will be." he said to try and ease people's nerves. " Nothing else we can really do about it."

* * *

Ark looked around outside, sighing softly as he gazed about, trying to find something to do. He was bored, to say the least, but not enough to go exploring on his own. It was a scary world out there...

Sighing again, he turned to look back at everyone, whining faintly. " When do we go?" he was aware that he sounded like a child, but silence did nothing to ease the fears he had.

" In a few." Sion said, checking his ammunition. " We can't just go rushing everywhere without any idea what's going on, or where to go. Once Chad gives the go-ahead, we can take off." He looked back at Ark, his brown eyes flickering over the Hunter's features, noting he looked extremely tense. " " Don't worry... between you, me, and Matthew, we can protect all of them."

Ark nodded, looking back at the others. He was worried, it seemed as if every time he turned around, someone was hurt. It wasn't like he could bear everyone's pain, but he needed to be quicker in fights. If he could move just a tiny bit faster, he could spare someone from being hurt badly. " I hope you're right..."

Matthew gently placed his hand on Ark's shoulder, causing the Hunter to look over at him. " It's okay, friend! We'll pull through. I promise." he said, a grin that could have contested with Louis any day of the week plastered on his face. Granted, it did help marginally, but he was still saddened.

Ark nodded slowly, looking out at the area. " Hey, Matthew?"

Matthew looked at him. " Yes?"

" Do you... are you afraid of losing someone?" Ark asked slowly.

" Yeah." Matthew said, his smile falling away to be replaced by a faraway look. " I'm afraid of losing someone. Every day, I'm afraid."

" Because you'll never see them again?" Ark asked, picking at his nails.

Matthew chuckled. " Because I know, when I get to heaven... they'll kick my ass for not protecting them."

Ark chortled at that, looking back at the scenery. " Do you even know where the next safe house is?"

" Yeah, found it earlier." Matthew said, pointing out over the swamp. " It's way out there, a bit of a walk... but we can make it. One of us will have to carry Ellis though."

" So..." Ark trailed off. " What do you and your brother do out here sometimes?"

Matthew sighed. " Mostly get through the day. It's all we can do sometimes. We sometimes perform cleanup of the infected, apologizing to those we have to kill. It hurts sometimes."

" I can imagine it sometimes..." Ark said. " I had friends, friends we had to leave behind... I didn't want them to get hurt."

Matthew smiled, gently patting Ark's shoulder. " Hey, listen. If they're your friends... you'll see them. Trust me on that one. After all, Ethan's coming to see us! We've been friends for a long time."

" How do you know Ethan?" Ark said, eyes wide.

" He used to come take photos of the swamps." Matthew said. " He was a photographer. Took pictures of practically everything that'll stand still."

" So what's he doing now?" Ark asked, genuinely curious. " I mean, besides surviving?"

" Last I heard... bringing his wife and kids to come live with us. We have a fair amount of supplies and a lot of space... plus, Ethan's... fighting ability is second to none." Matthew replied.

" He that good with a gun?" Sion asked, sitting in on the conversation, none of the humans able to hear.

Matthew grinned widely. " Not many want to go toe-to -toe with a clever Charger."

" ….wait what?" Sion said, startled. " Charger?"

" Didn't see it?" Matthew said softly. " He's doing a good job of hiding it. But yeah, he's a Charger. Mary used to be a scientist as well. The kids... no idea. Dunno if they're even his." he looked at them in all seriousness. " But for god sakes... DON'T make any jokes about his arm. He WILL pound you."

" That good, eh?" Sion said with an amused tone. Ark was glancing in between the two, innocently wondering what kind of jokes could be made with someone's arm.

" Don't tell me he's that innocent..." Matthew said, looking at Ark with a raised eyebrow. " Boy, the first girl that beds you is gonna have a chore trying to teach you."

" Huh?" Ark asked.

Sion roared with laughter. " The first girl he finds had better be a damn good cook. If she doesn't know how to make burgers... she's just out of luck!"

Matthew and Sion shared a good laugh at Ark's expense, the Hunter sitting there with a sour look on his face. " It's not funny..." he whined.

" You're right... it's not funny." Sion said, trying to keep a straight face. "...it's HILARIOUS!" he giggled, rolling over.

Matthew snickered as well, trying to keep his good mood about him. " Well, I'm gonna offer to carry Ellis, so we should get ready to go."

Ark nodded, going to sit with the others, Matthew walking past him to go talk to Chad. After a few moments, the Spitter bent down to help Ellis up, slowly maneuvering him to an easy to carry position, helping the mechanic walk slowly. " Are we ready?" he asked.

Everyone present nodded, the group slowly making their way out of the downed plane, continuing their journey. Ark halted for a moment, staring out at the plane they had just left, going over the previous conversations, things finally clicking into place. " _HEY! Sion, Matthew, you two are terrible!_" he shouted, running after them.

" _Yea, he's that easy to tease."_ Sion whispered to Matthew, the two infected laughing as they walked on the thin trail through the swamps.

* * *

" Tomato."

" Orange."

" Eel."

"Leech."

" Ham." the game had continued on for an hour now, with the survivors and present infected guessing random items, mainly based on what the person was thinking of. Needless to say, they weren't anywhere near Nick's thought of "shower."

" Ten guesses left." he said in a monotone voice, sighing as Ark guessed " Burger," looking for the safe house that should be nearby. " Can anyone see anything? Anything at all?"

" Murk and more murk." Coach replied. " Unless you count the scenery, which hasn't changed in the last half-hour."

" Yay for repetition, I guess." Rochelle added. " Ellis, how are you holding up?" her tone changed from sarcastic to gentle, Matthew making a noise, helping Ellis stand up a bit more.

" On the edge of exhaustion..." Matthew sighed. " We had better hurry."

" You're the one leading the way, dumbass." Nick said. " You wanna complain about the speed, set a faster pace."

" Who spit in your cornflakes this morning?" Sion asked, one eyebrow arched. " Because you haven't been in a good mood all day."

" What cornflakes, what breakfast?" Nick snapped back. " What part of we haven't eaten in a while doesn't click?" as if to add to his point, his stomach growled, the con-artist wrapping one hand around his abdomen. " We haven't eaten since we landed in this swamp. That sound you hear? It's my stomach eating itself."

Matthew gave him a sympathetic look. " Sorry... I know you're sufferin, but I'm going as fast as I can with Ellis... but it can't be much further, I swear."

Ark was thankful when the safe-house did appear, the whole group filing in. Immediately, Chad set about tending to Ellis's wounds, the southerner being lured into sleep by the medicine given to him, curling up only slightly. " Another day, another scar." Coach said sadly, watching Chad work.

Sion nodded, showing Coach the scar on his wrist. " This is from getting attacked by a Tank... I had worn dog-tags on this wrist, but the Tank's attack tore it off."

Rochelle winced before showing off a scar on her ankle. " Some of the shrapnel hit my leg during my escape from my... rabid...coworkers." she sighed.

Coach sighed, pulling up his pant leg to show them an injury to his leg. " Ain't scarred yet, but it will. Pulls every once in a while and stings like a bitch."

Ark remained silent for a while before slowly pulling up his shirt, showing them all a large scar on his stomach. " ...Witch." he said softly. It was a scar he wore with both pain and pride, the memories of meeting the first survivors still strong. Nick remained quiet, legs pulled tightly to the rest of his body in a poor attempt at some form of rest, eyes closed.

The discussion seemed to fall flat around there, the whole group settling in a bit to catch a brief rest before they had to set out again.

* * *

Two hours later, Ellis had awoken, and while he was in no great mood, he was able to walk. Matthew was more than happy to help him to his feet, sighing as he helped Ellis along. " It's not much further, you guys... as soon as we reach the house, I'll make beds for everyone." he said with a sigh.

"I'll believe it when I see it..." Nick said, his voice strained. Lack of sleep wasn't doing wonders for his mood. Ark had to agree with him, the group slowly making their way past the houses.

" I can't believe we walked all night..." Rochelle said, grimacing.

" Better than walking all day." Coach said, looking back. " But not by much."

" I'm just glad the infected presence here seems to be diminishing." Chad said, pleased he could save ammunition.

"Diminished, but still here." Sion said, Ark scouting ahead. They had encountered a bit of trouble when they had to maneuver around a rusted bridge between houses. Rather than chancing the horde, they took a different route. Nick hadn't been too keen on the idea of treading water, but even he had to admit it was better than dealing with a panicked frenzy while Ellis was in no shape to fight. The second downside came in the form of the temporary shelter they took residence in, the room having not been big enough for all of them to try and sleep, some being forced to stand. Still, it was better than the alternative, trying to sleep outside was suicide. Sighing, Sion watched as Ark headed up the trail, curiously sniffing along before running, the group following at their own pace.

Ark panted faintly as he ran along the trail, sunlight peeking through the trees and allowing him to see where he was going. He found that he rather enjoyed mornings, simply for the fact of increased visibility. Nighttime hunting was hard to do sometimes. Turning along the trail, he stopped and stared up in awe as he saw several plantation homes, the closest one looking like a good place to rest and recover. The multiple homes nearby also held the faint chances of supplies, like extra ammunition and possibly food. He could eat anything, but he was dying for a burger. " Safe... safety for now..." he said with a smile, yelping as he heard a gunshot, jumping back and looking at the hole in the ground in front of him.

" Identify yourself!" A voice barked. " NOW."

Ark garbled, having not been prepared for such a thing. " I am a survivor... I came here looking for shelter, and rescue!" he said hurriedly, hearing the sound of someone reloading. " I mean it!"

The sounds stopped for a minute, the voice coming back. " What is your name, stranger?"

" Ark... Ark Hunter..." Ark replied, scared. There was a crashing noise, followed by several voices, one pissed off. A familiar face appeared in the nearby window, pangs of relief and then dread flowing through Ark's body.

"ARK..." Zoey said, cracking her knuckles at the top of the second floor window. " COME HERE." her tone left little room for argument.

Ark whimpered softly. " ….h-h-hi... Zoey..." he instantly turned to flee, running smack-dab into Coach, who caught him as the rest of the group caught up.

" Now hold on here, son, why are you trying to take off like a rocket in the OTHER direction?" Coach asked, lifting one eyebrow.

Sion waved to Zoey, smiling. " Mainly because we're in a world of trouble." he said, having calmly accepted the fact that the others were out to pound him into paste.

It didn't take Zoey long to get down to them, running out the front door, seizing Ark's ear and dragging him into the house, roaring bloody murder about leaving without even so much as a damned note. All Ark could do was quietly whimper and repeat over and over that he was sorry, Sion casually following him. Louis eagerly tried to greet Sion, the Smoker ducking out of the way. " Can't say I didn't try." Louis said, looking behind Sion to see all of the other survivors. " Whoa... you guys made a lot of friends!"

Coach smiled back. " We're all just a big happy family." he said, extending a hand to Louis. " My friends call me Coach."

Louis happily shook the offered hand. " The girl's Zoey, and in the back we've got a few others."

Coach beamed slightly. " So nice to see another friendly face around here." he said. " This is Rochelle, and Nick – don't mind him, he's always like this – and the injured one is Ellis.

Louis looked over at the group, making an approving noise. " The guy who owns this place said another group would be coming sometime soon, I just didn't think this soon." he led them into the living room, which had a few items scattered about. " Forgive the mess, since we got here, all we've been trying to do is recover from our injuries."

Zoey was berating Ark in the room, the Hunter looking like a whipped and beaten dog, occasionally whining faintly to try and beg for forgiveness, Louis gesturing around the room while trying to clean up. " That's Francis, another one of our group, and upstairs is our leader, Bill. He's... something else sometimes." he shrugged, picking up a discarded beer bottle and glaring at Francis.

" A cantankerous old coot, that's what he is." Francis growled around a beer bottle. " Old fart doesn't have the decency to go senile on us, gotta keep trucking on." Upon seeing Rochelle, his eyes traveled up her form, lingering a while in certain places. " And hello, vision of loveliness."

" Back off, greaseball." Nick said, a hint of acid in his voice, making his presence known for the first time in a while.

Francis gave Nick a look. " What's it to you, suit? I've got eyes, don't I? And I happen to be using them." he said with another long glance at Rochelle's form.

Nick causally walked up to Francis, not close enough to be touching, but enough to make his point clear. " I will gouge your eyes out if you keep looking, got it? Or did they forget to teach comprehension at remedial school?" he said, tilting his head. " We've fought through hell and back to get here, and I'm sure as hell not going to sit here and listen to you make stupid passes at someone you just met."

Francis glared back, looking as if he wanted to grind Nick's face into the carpeting. " Mind your language, we've got a lady present." he said with a casual wink to Rochelle.

" Wasn't aware that the new fad among girls was to wear their dad's greasy vest." Nick said. " Or shave their heads in some poor attempt to be badass."

Rochelle herself groaned and walked off, Coach following her with a deep sigh as the fight seemed to escalate. Chad in the meantime, urged Matthew and Ellis into another area to properly treat wounds, everyone intent on letting the two pit bulls fight.

* * *

" Listen, Colonel Sanders, I'm not exactly appreciative of you waltzing in here and acting like you own the fucking place, you hear me?" Francis said, cracking his knuckles.

" I don't see your name on the mailbox, asshat, I can come and go as I damn well please." Nick shot right back. " And I don't give a shit about whose place this is, I DO however, give a shit about who you keep staring at. Touch any of them, and watch what I do. Go on back to jail bait over there."

" Go to hell, suit." Zoey snapped, releasing Ark, who whimpered and scampered away. " You wanna have a pissing contest, fine. But keep calling me names and insulting everyone, and I'll shoot you."

" Already in hell, darling." Nick purred back. " And I'm really going to care about what some underage kid's got to say? How did you even survive all this shit? Or is the sex that good they've gotta keep you around?"

Zoey growled. " How on earth did you even manage to live this long... if you were traveling with us, you'd have been killed long ago, but not by the zombies."

" Key word, 'if.'" Nick said, holding up a finger to prove his point. " I really couldn't care how you idiots made it. Jail bait with PMS, Greaseball, idiot optimist, and an old man. Those zombies must not have been THAT hungry, or not in the mood for absolute crap."

" Explains why you weren't on the menu either." Francis grumbled, Ark coming back into the room and sitting down, watching everyone. " You're so full of crap it's leaking out your eyeballs."

Ark whined softly, wanting them to stop as the fighting seemed to sour the mood of the entire house. Nick was doing a good job of staving off both Francis and Zoey, but the insults being slung about were a bit scathing.

" How did you get here?" Ark asked, a bit curious as to how the others had even found the house, also clearly trying to break up the fight by changing the subject. " What happened after we left?"

Zoey ignored Nick and Francis to answer him. " Well, the day after we discovered you had gone missing without so much as a note... we spent the whole day searching the camp. When we realized Chad and Sion were gone too, it didn't take too long for us to make the connection. At first, we had wanted to let you guys set out on your own, but then things happened. The forest encampment got attacked but some crazies."

Ark made a noise, lifting an eyebrow. " Are...are Colt and Solaris okay?"

Zoey nodded slowly. " Solaris and her family are safe... some soldiers came for them. Said something about hitting a place that's so far it's not on the map. I didn't trust them at first, but then I sorta gave up on being mad at them... they're the kinda guys Chad would hang out with, goofballs. So, I felt it was okay to trust her with them..." she trailed off, sighing softly.

Ark crawled over to her side, sighing. " What am I missing?" he said, looking at her hands, which were wringing themselves. " What about Colt?"

Zoey let out a deep sigh. " We had no choice but to take him with us. I feel so bad, having to separate him from something he knows. He's been miserable the whole time."

Ark looked surprised that they had brought the Shooter with them, making a noise. " Where is he?" he asked.

" Upstairs... he's been sticking close to Desert's side the entire time." Zoey replied, Matthew making a delighted noise and blowing past everyone, clearly intent on going to reunite with his brother.

* * *

Matthew bounded up the stairs, his mind frantically trying to come up with the best "welcome home" line ever, stopping in the doorway upon seeing his brother.

Desert was sitting on the bed, eyes half lidded as he changed the numerous bandages decorating his torso and arms, grimacing softly at touching a nasty bruise on his ribcage. Colt was settled beside him, the young Shooter holding a medical bag with his human hand, warbling sounds escaping him.

" Y' look terrible..." Matthew said, concern etched into his features.

Desert grimaced, gently tracing one bandage. " I feel terrible. I'm lucky to be alive right now. I owe that group in the house a huge debt. So for now, I'm letting them stay. Fighting both a Tank and a Shooter at the same time is not something I'm eager to try and repeat." he winced as Colt tried to adjust a bandage, the action not well received.

Matthew nodded slowly, trying to think of something to say that would make the mood brighter. " Remember the group I was with? They're here too. They're gonna try t' get Virgil t' come get them." he said, gesturing out the window. " Course, I don' know if Virgil's even still out there."

Desert arched his back slightly, wincing as it pulled. " He is still out there. I saw the boat this morning. He must still be making rounds, occasionally searching for survivors in need of transport."

Matthew breathed a sigh of relief. " That's good. Are y' going to go with the group you brought?" he asked. " I mean, once y' healed?"

" Perhaps. At the very least, I can point them in the right direction." Desert said, stretching his legs out. " It's the least I owe them for saving my life back at the carnival. I got lucky that they were very, very lost. Plus the molotov thrown by that woman managed to burn an exit through the tents."

Matthew sighed, nodding as he wondered who the woman was. The man he knew, the woman was an absolute mystery to him. "Alexander's in town, and he means business." he said warningly, his older brother glancing up at him. " I bumped into 'im earlier... and y' know his co-worker's been behind the attacks on the camps and us..."

" If Alexander is here... Ethan is not that far behind. Which means all four of us will be in the same location once more..." Desert said with a sigh, a hint of nostalgia in the air. " When was the last time that happened?"

" When the military base that had been set up nearby got torn to pieces by us." Matthew deadpanned. Desert chuckled at that, sighing softly. " Good times, that. But... all four of us arriving in one place doesn't bode well."

" Y' think?" Matthew said, grimacing.

Desert fell silent again, motioning for Colt to come forward, the smaller Shooter sitting there and letting Desert tend to the stump of his missing arm. "So... which one of us is going to go with them?" he asked, looking back at Matthew. " If Virgil runs out of fuel... you know where they have to stop."

Matthew paled. " The ol' sugar mill downriver..." he whispered. " That place scares me so..."

Desert nodded as well. " I know. I hate it too. But... one of us will have to go with them to navigate."

Matthew sighed, sitting beside his brother. " Let's just burn that bridge when we get to it, okay? For now, let's focus on getting you patched up." he said, fumbling around in the bag to look for more bandages.

* * *

End Chapter 38

Took me a while to write, but I had a lot of fun with it, especially when I got to livestream it and get feedback from my fans. If you're interested in joining a livestream sometime, send me a message.

In other news, Ark and Sion both have tumblrs now, and they are ask blogs. Art is provided by my lovely sister, and any fanarts will be loved to pieces and showcased.

As always, read and review!

Ciao~


	39. Bonds

Chapter 39: Bonds

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own left 4 Dead 2

* * *

Ark sat still as he watched the hustle and bustle of the house, gazing around. After introductions had been made, it seemed as if everyone had gone to their own separate corners to socialize. The group he was currently with acted as if they wanted nothing to do with his older group, and it made him feel uncomfortable. Zoey and Francis clearly hated Nick and weren't exactly shy about making sure the con-artist knew that. It was a bit taxing, wanting to hug your old team and wanting to strangle them at the same time.

Yawning, he stretched out before going into the kitchen, searching for some form of food. It wasn't exactly like he was seeking to prepare anything, but if there was something there to eat, that would be nice.

Turning into the well designed kitchen, he sat and looked at the ceiling, smiling faintly as he looked at the walls. Everything about the home seemed... warm and inviting. He felt as if he was home, and everything was going to be okay. Smiling, he looked up as he saw Zephyr cleaning up some pots and pans, grinning cheerfully. The witch had her hair done up in a ponytail, and she was intent on cleaning the pans despite her disadvantage with her claws, scrubbing gingerly with the sponge. Zoey and the others had done a great job on making the Witch look even better, the sleeveless turtleneck accentuated with form-fitting jeans. She sang softly as she worked, setting a washed plate underneath the faucet, rinsing off the suds as Sion slowly came up behind her. Ark suddenly felt it was wise to go elsewhere, or at least out of sight range.

Sion smiled as he gently poked Zephyr's shoulder, the witch turning to look at him. " Hey there, you look good." he said, smiling faintly at her.

She smiled back, gently tucking a lock of hair behind one ear. " Zoey said something about making sure I looked good for the boys. Dunno what on earth she was referring to, but I think she meant you two."

Sion laughed softly, figuring it was just like Zoey to suggest such a thing. " Yeah... that's Zoey for you. Still looks good though. Light and easy to get around in. So, where's the little ankle-biter? I haven't seen him lately..."

" Being halfway across another state might have something to do with that, you know." Zephyr said, chuckling. " Bill grabbed him earlier. Said something about making him look less like a rag-a-muffin."

Sion covered his face. " Oh god, that poor kid's gonna need therapy after Bill's done with him. He's either gonna give the kid a bowl cut or a crew cut. Maybe even make him wear a helmet."

" I don't think they're allowed to recruit that early, Sion." Zephyr said, an eyebrow raised. " Besides, it's not like there's much to do right now, might as well just teach him a few things. By the way, what on earth was that awful racket earlier? It sounded like a bunch of people arguing..."

Sion covered his face. " The new group we found... there's a guy in there whose ferocity can match a pit bull with a stomach bug. Cranky, rude, and self-centered. He, Zoey, and Francis didn't exactly get along very well."

Zephyr raised her other eyebrow. " Francis, I get. Zoey? How did that come into play?"

Sion covered his face with a groan. " The guy -his name's Nick- more or less suggested that the only reason Zoey managed to survive is that she performs... extra special activities to the others so they'll keep her alive."

Zephyr took a minute to process that, sighing as she put both hands on her face. " Charming, isn't he?"

" Top of his class." Sion agreed dryly. " But, enough of that, I'm glad you're safe. I was worried something had happened to you because you couldn't come into the camp with us."

Zephyr smiled softly. " I don't go down that easily. After everyone had to leave me outside, I made a small shelter nearby the camp and the others came and brought me food once in a while. Actually, when the camp was attacked, I was one of the people helping to defend it until the military got there."

Sion smiled warmly. " What happened afterward?" he asked, interested in hearing what had gone on after they left for the south. " I mean, I heard Colt's here. Why is he here, he's supposed to be living with Solaris..."

Zephyr's smile faded and she sighed softly. " The infected swarmed the entire place. Normally, the river did a good job of protecting us, but someone had placed a multitude of infected drawing traps around the camp. Jars of boomer bile had been thrown around, calling infected from great distances. I wanted to warn everyone, but it was hard, especially with the guard towers... I didn't get there in time. We lost some of the people living there, but the military arrived and took care of most of the situation. They decided to evacuate the area, declaring the place an infected risk zone. Solaris and her mother were among the people evacuated."

She set another dish in the sink, sighing as she started the faucet again. "Colt had been devastated, and was inconsolable for hours. Luckily, we were able to catch up with the unit and talk to them, and we found out that they were pretty nice guys. They weren't evacuating to a big camp like most do, they were taking as many people as they could to other locations and helping them get into small settlements, ones where experimenting wasn't a top priority. Some military officials are getting desperate, Sion. They're doing everything in their power to subdue the infection, even if it means killing innocent people."

Sion leaned against the counter. " I know. I'm just worried that we may be transmitting it to others by traveling around like this. Call me paranoid, but I think someone's behind a lot of things, and they're trying to clean up their mistake."

" There's a lot of mistakes being made." Zephyr finished with the last dish, removing the apron she was wearing and setting it on the table. " Some think it's airborne, some say it's by touch, others are completely insane and avoiding any and all human contact. While on our travels, we found a couple living in a hotel room, they blasted loud music from the roof in an attempt to get us killed. We didn't even go anywhere near them, and they tried to kill us. People are that afraid of this virus."

Sion sighed. " I'm not surprised. Speaking of strange, have you seen anyone named Alexander? I heard Matthew, the guy who brought us here talking about him to his brother. He said something about the four of them getting in the same place again... and bad things happen when it does."

Zephyr hummed faintly. " Well, we did meet a strange man. He was about the same height as Francis, and kindly introduced himself as Anthony... he was looking for his son, who had gotten separated from him. He was kind about talking with us, but I got the feeling he really didn't even want to look at us. It was sort of like... he wanted to kill us all if we didn't have any information for him, but he was too bored to do so. I think his name was also false. He did give us a picture of his son though, and I held onto it." She reached into her pocket and selected a picture from the small wallet she carried, giving it to Sion.

Sion gazed at the picture slowly, seeing two people in the picture. "... I can't really make it out." he said. " I see a older person, with dark hair, but eye color is hard to determine. The younger one... looks kind of like Ark."

" That's why I wanted to find you guys as soon as possible, show you the photograph." She said. " Anthony also said that the older man in the picture is missing too. He's looking for the both of them, but his son is the most important."

" He give you a name to go by?" Sion asked.

Zephyr sighed. " No luck in that department. He said we would know the boy by his face."

" Way to be vague." Sion groaned, covering his face. " I'm gonna go check on Ellis, and then I'll be back, k?" he told her, the witch softly nodding.

* * *

" Nick, I swear to god if you don't stop that irritating noise, I will smack you." Coach threatened, starting to become more than just a little annoyed with Nick's current behavior. The con-artist was in a foul mood, having been on the receiving end of Rochelle's glare after he had fought with Zoey and Francis, more than willing to share his good cheer. He was currently sitting in a very comfortable loveseat, unloading and reloading a pistol out of pure frustration.

" Now don't go smacking him for no reason, Coach." Ellis said from where he was laying, the bed he was laying on feeling like a small slice of heaven to the mechanic. " Matthew was kind enough to give us all this space to rest in, I don' think he wants it all bloodied or torn."

Nick snorted softly, his eyes narrowing in fury as Zoey came into the room. " Hey, Coach... Louis wanted to talk to you and..." her voice trailed off as she saw Ellis, who was staring at her with wide eyes. " Uhm..."

" Heh heh... hello ma'am... gosh... wow... erm..." Ellis was a nervous wreck, a scarlet tinge on his face as his eyes flickered every direction, his tongue having trouble with getting its act together.

" Boy, you been killing zombies for how long now? I think you can talk to a girl..." Coach mumbled under his breath.

Ellis shot him a look, fiddling with his hands. " Eh.. er... um... how-how are you today?" he finally got out, Zoey giving him a smile.

" Fine, thanks for asking!" she smiled. " How about you, those wounds look pretty bad..."

Ellis puffed up proudly. " What, these? Hell, I've had worse. Y'see, I got them holdin' my ground against them zombies, can't let them get to my friends!"

Nick rolled his eyes and walked past Zoey to get out of the room. " Going to go check on Ro'." he mumbled as his excuse for a hasty retreat from Ellis attempting to look like a tough guy.

Coach looked at the two, lifting an eyebrow. " Well, Zoey, do you think you can help me look after Ellis a moment? I need to go check with Chad about some painkillers for my knee..." he said, getting up and smiling, patting her shoulder gently. He of course needed no such thing at the moment, but anything to get out of the room and let Ellis have a moment with one of the new group.

* * *

Nick exhaled softly as he rested on the balcony of the house, staring out at the scenery. Everyone else in the building were either resting, seeking to fill their stomach, or chatting with someone. He wasn't that interested in trying to bond with these people, he was more interested in escaping.

It was a harsh lesson to learn after leading such a solo life. After all, it was easier to convince people he had a unbelievable sum of money, and they would get some if they helped him out. Now, practical skills were worth far more than money, and it would take some getting used to.

Sighing, he leaned back against a wall, massaging his forehead, feeling a headache creeping on. It was a lot to deal with in the last... shit, he had forgotten how long it had been since he had anything close to a normal day. He felt as if the whole world was crashing down on him in a painful manner, his whole body ached and his shoulder stung from constant use. Groaning faintly, he stretched out while rolling his shoulder slightly as he watched Sion and Chad walk out towards the treeline to look around, watching them curiously before looking up as Rochelle settled beside him.

" Nick, did you have to fight with the others...?" she asked softly, tucking her knees to her chest. " I mean, I know we're all stressed from fighting for our lives, but you didn't have to bite their heads off."

" I'm not interested in staying long. You of all people should know that." Nick said. " Only reason I'm staying is because we all need some rest before trying to call that boat owner." he looked at his hand, looking at all the scratches decorating his skin. " You should head back inside... try and get some rest without that biker gawking at you for a hour or so." He didn't want to acknowledge the fact that he knew if he went back inside and spotted the other team right now, another ball of anger would settle in the pit of his stomach and he'd go off again. However, with Ellis resting and Coach keeping a vigilant watch over him, Nick knew he'd have no form of backup whatsoever. For now, his solution to his obvious problem was to ignore it for a while, his attention being grabbed as Rochelle settled beside him.

" It's quiet here." Rochelle said softly, her shoulder resting against Nick's. " I'd rather rest here than where it's noisy." she closed her eyes gently and leaned against him, Nick blinking slowly as she yawned softly. " Don't make too much noise, ok?" she asked him before falling silent, Nick studying her features for a few moments and then returning his gaze to the yard.

"...Sure thing, sweetheart."

* * *

Sion yawned and stretched his arms until he heard a pop, licking his lips slightly as he looked out at the area. Chad was somewhere nearby, and would most likely call for him if he needed it, so for now, he was on guard duty. He didn't mind though, it was quiet and peaceful here. Desert and Matthew had done a spectacular job on keeping the infected population around their home down, there was actually time to stop and enjoy the scenery for once.

Sitting back, he gazed out at the trees with a sort of a serene gaze, only to have it shattered when a large Hunter jumped on him. The Hunter was wearing a dark sweatshirt, growling as it lifted it's hand to claw at the fabric of his shirt, the Smoker wheezing and raking his short claws against the Hunter's chest, startling it enough to where he could bring both legs up and kick it off. The Hunter landed in a simple roll, crouching before lunging again as Sion brought up his acquired shotgun, biting onto the barrel and tugging it like a dog, Sion yelping as he tugged back. " Chad! Help!" he cried, the Hunter tugging on the gun again before lunging forward, knocking Sion to the ground, the Smoker grimacing as a stick poked into his back uncomfortably.

The Hunter growled again, lifting his clawed hand again before looking at Sion carefully. "...Kevan...?"

" No coincidence!" Sion barked, kicking the Hunter off again, scrambling to find his gun. Upon seeing it out of his arm's reach, he shot his tongue out, wrapping it around the barrel quickly and pulling it to him, securing it in his hands and whirling to face the Hunter, only to find the area empty.

" … Who was that...?" he asked as Chad finally came into the clearing, huffing and puffing.

* * *

The large Hunter hopped from tree to tree, stopping only to nurse his bruised ribs before stopping at a house, grimacing as he looked at the bruise forming. " Damn asshole and his kicks..." he hissed, a low voice making him whirl around.

" Perhaps you shouldn't have been so hasty?" Ethan asked, walking forward. " I understand you want to find your child, but to so zealously attack someone for no good reason..."

" You DON'T understand." Alexander hissed. " I fucked up, got it? I let my son go on a sour note. I wanted him to take up the same job profession I had, but he didn't want to and we clashed. We both said stupid shit and I let him go. The one time in my life I was happy and I fucked it up." he sat down against the tree trunk, slamming his head against it with a sigh. " And then life really went to hell with this virus. If I'm ever going to make anything right again, I have to find that kid of mine." His eyes looked downcast and he exhaled again, looking depressed.

Ethan sighed, rubbing his head softly. " Before you even start, you're not the world's crappiest parent. You've seen other horrible examples."

Alexander glared at him. " If you're trying to cheer me up, you're doing a really bad job of it."

" Wasn't trying to cheer you up." Ethan replied, getting up to check on his wife.

" So where's the brats?" Alexander asked. " You know, the three little tag-alongs?"

Ethan laughed softly, placing a blanket on Mary. " I left them in good hands. It's safer than traveling with me. It can get a bit crazy in fights sometimes."

" Do you mean you left them with those soldiers?" Alexander said, a disgruntled tone entering his voice. " I don't trust soldiers, least of all goofball soldiers."

The charger rolled his eyes slowly. " They're a hell of a lot better than leaving them with an encampment. The soldiers often stationed there are... useless."

Alexander let out a harsh laugh. " Useless? Try unable to fight their way out a fucking paperbag even when armed with an airstrike and tank. One Tank or Shooter, and they scatter like petals off a flower in the hands of a hormonal girl."

" Never heard it put that way before..." Ethan chuckled. " But I'd be lying if I didn't say at least half of it was accurate."

" Which half?" Alexander said, raising one eyebrow underneath the hood of his sweatshirt.

" I'll let you decide which half." Ethan trailed off. " So, did you learn anything from your little trip to the twins besides how much kicks hurt?"

Alexander snorted, rubbing his ribs again. " I think I found Kevan... you remember him, little rebel wannabe before all this shit went down?"

Ethan thought for a moment. " Mmm... the Smoker, if I remember correctly? I thought there was a similarity, but that one's named Sion. Close appearance though, but his personality... well if he once was Kevan, his personality's done a complete 180."

Alexander growled. " I'll beat the memory into him if I have to."

Ethan gave him a stern look, looming over the Hunter. " Do you need me to re-school you about attacking random people for no good reason?"

Alexander stood up, staring Ethan in the eye. " I don't care what you think. I WILL find my son, no matter how many bodies I have to step over to find him. Get in my way, and there will be consequences." Turning, he crouched slightly before leaping away, grabbing onto a drainage pipe and neatly flipping onto a roof, running along the roof and leaping gracefully to the next one, soon vanishing from sight.

Ethan sighed once Alexander was gone, going over to Mary's side and gently covering her with a blanket. " Alexander, what will you do with yourself if, in the midst of searching for your son, you lose sight of what matters?" he whispered to no one, grabbing his weapon and sitting to take guard.

* * *

End chapter 39

... Has it really almost reached 40 chapters...?

You know, I only expected this to reach 10, at best 20. What was once a little lighthearted story has turned into such a tale... I've made so many roleplaying friends and best friends from this, and it just keeps getting better and better.

Wow.


	40. Relief

Chapter 40: Relief

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead 2

–

Chad sighed as he leaned back on his bed, rolling onto his stomach and looking around him, watching Coach sleep on the bed across the room with a blank gaze. Matthew had all but busted his neck making sure that everyone had sleeping places that night, and some, if not all of the residents of the house were eager to enjoy it.

He was not one of them.

Worry ate at his mind like termites to a tree, leaving him with a sense of dread. Save for Ellis being injured... things were too perfect in his opinion. While had been in service to the military... he had come to expect hectic days as the norm, and calm days as ones to be feared. Nick was still a low grade injury as well, his shoulder occasionally acted up and it could be aggravated if he was forced to do something drastic.

Getting to his feet , he headed out to go see if anyone else was up. Even though his mind wanted to sleep, his body had other plans. Peering around a corner, he was surprised to find Desert lounging on a couch, eyes closed and head resting on a pillow. Upon hearing Chad's footsteps, the man let out a soft sigh and opened his eyes. "Couldn't sleep?"

Chad nodded slowly. " Yeah... too nervous, I guess."

Desert chuckled softly. " Well, there is no law that says you have to leave right away. Rest and recover." He rolled onto his side to get a better look, brushing some of the hair off his face with a sigh.

"After all, tomorrow promises to be another big day." Chad finished for him.

" I doubt your team will be ready to go in a day." Desert said, looking at him. "After all, Ellis is injured. One day isn't enough to heal ."

"I know. While I'm thinking about it too, thanks for letting us stay here for a bit." Chad said with a grateful smile. " I'm sure everyone here appreciates it, even the grumpy ones."

The man resting on the couch let out a soft chuckle, gesturing to the chair in the room. " No law against talking either... come, tell me all about what you guys did after I left you in the forest."

Chad nodded softly, settling into the seat. " Well, once Sion got better..." he continued on, a smile touching his face as his worries were eased for the time being.

* * *

The balcony was quiet as Nick enjoyed the peaceful night air. Amazingly, when Rochelle had rested her head on his shoulder, he had fallen asleep too. She was still sleeping where he had left her, but with his suit jacket tucked around her to keep her warm. The wind gently ruffled his hair as it blew past him, the icy chill in the night air making him shiver slightly before he tensed up as smoke trailed past his field of vision, turning to see an elderly man enjoying a smoke.

" Cool your jets, I'm only up here to enjoy my vices away from the little ones." Bill said, flicking his cigarette free of ashes before bringing it back up to his lips. "Well, that and to see what I can get with this guy." he said, patting the sniping rifle beside him.

" Never did bother with that shit, Ellis seems to like playing Sniper." Nick said, turning his eyes to the landscape. " As long as it kept him quiet, I didn't care."

Bill rolled his eyes somewhat. " Sniping's useful, it's what helped turn many battles during the war. Of course, you'd actually have to be a good shot with it to make a difference..."

" I rest my case." Nick sighed, looking out at the scenery.

Bill stubbed out his cigarette, lifting an eyebrow slightly. From what Zoey and Francis spent an hour each ranting about, Nick wasn't exactly an aggressive person as they had claimed he was. But then again, it was late at night, he probably caught him in one of his off moods. With how much ranting the two had done , he expected the con-artist to be biting and snarling at everything for looking at him the wrong way. People like that in the army often were invited to blanket parties.

Shrugging, he brought the sniper rifle to his shoulder, adjusting it accordingly. Contrary to what many youngsters believed about the rifle, using it took skill. If one was to use it, they should address it as they would a beautiful woman; approach with care and caution, for the consequences of mishandling was rather painful. Bringing the scope up to his eyes, he carefully scanned the area for infected. Upon spotting a lone common, he patiently waited for it to stop lumbering about and stand still, easing his breathing and counting his heartbeats.

At the same time, Nick had also spotted the common lurching about and was wondering why Bill hadn't taken the shot yet, Ellis seemed to fire the second he saw one. " Reflexes getting slow?" he asked, turning a lazy eye to the scenery.

" Keep dreaming, boy. Ask for a new puppy while you're at it." Bill said stiffly, holding his breath and taking the shot, basking in the brief satisfaction of watching the common's head explode like a melon. Being in the heat of battle was one thing, but there was a sort of pleasure that could be taken from watching someone else's head pop and knowing you were the cause. Bonus points if you could freak out the rest of his squad while doing it. Sadly, the other common infected took little heed of their companion's death, still continuing to loiter around and stare at objects.

Nick's only response was to turn back to the scenery, gazing out at it with a far-away look in his eyes. Right now, he was lost in thought and taking little notice of the outside world. Granted, he was still aware of Rochelle's gentle breathing nearby and the smell of Bill's cigarette, but his mind was drawn away from the rest of it all. He hated to admit it, but he longed for the perilous nights at clubs and casinos, where he would often skirt the edge of disaster while lining his pockets with the investments made by gullible fools.

Things were easier to understand and cope with, and he sure as hell didn't feel like he understood anything now. The dinner that Matthew had made was a bit too rich for him to handle, so his stomach was a bit upset. But then again, most southern foods were a bit rich for him anyways. Cajun gumbo had a tendency to eat holes in his stomach even on their mildest attempts. He was willing to bet money that mothers nursed their children with bottles of hot sauce. Another deep sigh escaped him before he grabbed his gun and headed inside to find a blanket to cover Rochelle, wanting his suit jacket back so he could get some rest of his own, tomorrow promised to be another hectic day.

* * *

"Er... well, y'see, we met Ark n' the others when we were all campin' out at a motel..." Ellis said, unable to tear his eyes away from Zoey, who had politely asked how they met Ark and the others. " Nick, y'all met him, right?" he continued on, ignoring the look that crossed her face. " He was hurtin' something terrible from a Hunter wound, so we were restin' at the motel t' give him a chance t' heal. None of us had any real medical skills so we had ta patch him up as best as we could. Then Ark and the others found us, and Chad offered t' look at Nick for us. After that, we all jus' kinda stuck together. Ark and Sion are great company, I don' even mind if they are infected. Well, as long as they don' bite."

" Only if you're hoarding burgers." Zoey said with a chuckle. She fiddled with her hair slightly, watching Ellis continue on, only stopping briefly in his tale, hiding a small wince. " Ellis, if it hurts to talk, just lie down and rest. After all, Desert and Matthew were kind enough to let all of us spend the night." she said firmly, not wanting the boy to break something trying to speak to her.

" What IS Desert's real name anyways?" Ellis asked, getting off the subject. " He's always so secretive... leas' that's what I've heard."

Zoey sighed. " He won't tell anyone, you'd have to ask Matthew for it. Now lie down and get some rest, k?" she gently pushed Ellis back onto the bed and secured the blanket around him, sitting back. " Don't worry, we won't be leaving for a while, we can continue the conversation when you get up, okay?" she smiled gently at him, Ellis in turn giving her a goofy grin.

"Sure thing." he said cheerfully, laying on his side to rest. Zoey sat there with a smile for a bit before a scowl plastered on her face as Nick came into the room, stealing a blanket off a pile in the corner. " Should have figured the only known thing to shut him up would be a woman." the con-artist mumbled sleepily, slinging the blanket over his shoulder and heading back out.

" How do you even stand being in the same room as him?" Zoey asked icily, her eyes burning a hole in the door in a vain attempt to make Nick uncomfortable. " He is a complete and utter asshole..."

" Naw, Nick's just upset." Ellis said, rolling over. " An' he's uncomfortable with somethin'."

" Well, I'm glad you can peg his mood swings, all he manages to do is piss me off." Zoey grumbled.

" I know y' and Nick got off on the wrong foot there, Zoey," Coach said, having been quiet the whole time. " But we're all in this together, can't you give him a second chance?"

"It's kind of hard to when he managed to make all of us mad at him." Zoey said with a faint noise.

Coach chuckled. " Nick's always been like that. Strong willed, stubborn, sharp tongued... he's all of the above. But we're all in this together, Zoey... and each other is all we got. It won't do us any good to hate each other's flaws, everyone's got them. What's important is that we accept each other's flaws and move on as a team. We won't make it to any form of rescue if we can't even work as a team."

" What I don't get is how he can still act like that..." Zoey said. " Francis is an ass, sure, but even he manages to care about his teammates. Nick doesn't seem to care in the slightest, everyone here is a tool for him to reach safety and once he gets there, he'll ditch you. If he gets injured or sick, he throws a fit, but seems indifferent when someone else is hurting... the worst kind of person to be traveling with."

" Someone could say the same about you if they didn't know you, Zoey." Chad said, walking inside the room and kneeling beside his bag to go through it for supplies. " After all, you've only known the guy for less than a day, and you're denouncing him loudly behind his back. Not exactly a person I'd want to travel with either." Upon hearing her gasp in shock, he turned to head back out. " In this new world that's been forced upon us, Words and Actions speak far louder than Rank, Status, and Money. Things you say and do can mean the difference between someone saving you and leaving you to die alone. Think before you start insulting, or that makes you no better than him." not waiting for a rebuttal of sorts, he left the room and closed the door behind him.

Zoey sat there in shock, her eyes wide and mouth hanging open, any form of a rebuttal gone. She hadn't wanted to admit that Chad was right. Right now, their actions and words were the strongest things they had, and she had been using hers to denounce Nick to his own group. She felt stupid now, Nick was part of a team of survivors that had been banded together for who knows how long now. Ellis's goofiness, Rochelle's motherly tone, Coach's leadership and Nick's cynical attitude, they were a makeshift family, and she had just insulted it. " I'm sorry, Coach... I didn't mean to talk badly about your family." she finally said, lowering her head.

Coach looked at her. " It's okay Zoey. We all had our issues when we first started. Nick wasn't exactly my first choice for a teammate either. He is rude, doesn't care about others and is overall, a bad team player... but I do believe there is good in everyone, he's just not willing to show it to us yet. His life is a solo card game, it's just taking him some time to accept that there's other players at the table now."

Zoey sighed, looking over at Ark, who was standing in the doorway, holding a tub of water. " Hey, Ark. How have you been?" she asked, the Hunter smiling widely at her.

" Good!" Ark grinned. " Everyone's safe and happy, so it's all good."

" Cheerful as always." Zoey smiled, going and ruffling his hair. "Go talk to Zane, okay? He's been missing everyone terribly."

Ark pouted, wanting to talk to Zoey specifically." But..."

Zoey patted his head. " We'll talk later, okay?" she promised.

The Hunter reluctantly agreed, turning on his heel to go find Zane, Zoey pausing and looking at her hand, blinking slowly. Ellis managed to prop himself up on his elbows, looking at Zoey. " What's wrong?"

She made a faint noise, closing her hand gently. " He's grown. Not just mentally, but physically too. I guess the infection had to adapt to the south as well. Still... it was good to see him doing so well."

Ellis tilted his head, making a questioning noise. " Coach said y'all had a history with each other, mind tellin' me a little?"

Zoey smiled, settling back beside Ellis. " We're not connected romantically or anything, but Ark and I had a close relationship. He saved my life in Mercy City, the first place I had to escape from. Then I had to save his, he had gotten pretty torn up from the horde and a witch, the others were going to finish him off. I brought him into the safehouse and tended to him, nursed him back to health. He stayed with us until we reached a forest encampment... he decided to head south and leave us in what we thought was safety."

" Why are ya'll out south too?" Ellis asked, making a noise. " I'd have thought ya'll would be heading out to somewhere where the infection isn't that bad..."

" Things happened." Zoey said, sighing as she sat back in her chair. " First, the attack on the encampment caused us to have to leave. Shooters and other infected all swarmed the area and attacked at once. We beat off the attack, but we lost so many people in the process, the remaining people had to be evacuated. The Military soon showed up a day later or so, having finally managed to locate the place, and evacuated the remaining people."

She paused for a moment to stretch, letting out a satisfied sigh when the kink in her back finally went away. " There was a woman among them, her name was Solaris. She was a beautiful girl, and had a dazzling personality... you could say Colt was her partner in more ways than one."

" Colt?" Ellis interrupted. " I heard somethin' bein' said about a guy named Colt being here, but I didn't see anyone."

" He's shy." Zoey said. " Extremely shy. Without Solaris to be by his side, he's got no reason to be seen. When the military came, Colt refused to let Solaris be evacuated to the point of almost revealing that he was infected to protect her. Luckily, we had a huge turn of luck. Some of the military men came from the same place Chad did, and they were rounding up people to take to their base. Our whole group mulled it over for hours before allowing Solaris to go with them; we believed that they were the best place she could go to to remain safe." she sighed and undid her hair briefly, letting her hair hang on her shoulders. " Colt had no choice but to come with us because of his infection. We were told that the base was somewhere in the south, and we agreed to take Colt some of the journey there. He's adamant about being with her, even if it means his death."

"So how did ya meet Desert?" Ellis asked, still entranced with her voice and watching her work with her hair.

" He was near the carnival... well, more specifically, in it. We had been delayed for a few days thanks to Louis receiving a nasty scrape from a concrete welcoming gift from a Tank, so we arrived at the carnival... maybe about 4 hours after you guys went through. According to Desert, he had fought and or killed the Tank and Shooter you guys escaped from, and we found him all torn up. After we got him patched up, he offered to take us to his home in the swamps, as a way of repaying the debt he owed us. Originally we weren't going to go, we knew nothing about the location or the kinds of infected there, Bill didn't want to chance it." Zoey missed the faint look of despair crossing Ellis's features and continued on. " Still, the thought of having shelter for a few days was too good to pass up, especially with Louis's injury, so we came here. I guess we got here first because Matthew got disoriented in the helicopter crash."

Ellis nodded. " We didn' expect to land in the swamp," he said with a faint grin. " Nick was pissed as shit when we had t' go through the swamp water, I thought he was gonna have one of them meltdowns you see on television, he was so mad."

Zoey sighed, pulling her hair back. " He's like that, I guess." she finished tying her hair back and shook her head to make sure the ponytail was secure.

" Go to sleep you two." Coach finally said, opening one eye to look at them. " Mornin's gonna be here before you two stop talking."

Zoey and Ellis stared at Coach for a full minute before laughing softly, Zoey getting up and brushing her pants off. " Guess I'll see you in the morning, Ellis. Sleep well, k?"

" Sure thing, Angel." Ellis said with a goofy grin, waving goodbye as Zoey walked off, disappearing down the hall.

" So...?" Coach began, Ellis turning red as a beet.

" Do you believe in love at first sight?" Ellis said dreamily, Coach laughing and rolling over, putting the blanket on his head and closing his eyes to go to sleep, leaving Ellis to daydream.

" Sleep well, everyone. Got a big day tomorrow!" Ellis said cheerfully, laying back down and getting ready to sleep, Zoey's face still clear in his mind's eye.

"I hope not." was Coach's reply from underneath the blanket. " Now go to SLEEP, young'un."

" Okay."

* * *

End chapter 40

Ah, craziness. Seems as if the story's just as crazy as my life right now. I just started going back to school to take computer repair lessons for A+ Certifications, and it's eating away at my writing time.

Not much to say about this chapter, I wanted to portray the jumbled feelings everyone is having from meeting new people so unexpectedly. Bill ironically was the hardest to write, seeing as how in the canon story, he never met the second set of survivors. Zoey and Ellis were fun to write, he's such a goofball around her.''

See you all for now, I hope to have a new update ASAP!

Ciao~


	41. Alexander

Chapter 41: Alexander

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead 2

–

Morning came with a bang as tempers and personalities clashed, Ark sleepily dragging his head off a pillow, wiping at the trail of drool dribbling down his chin. Shaking the fog of sleep from his mind, he rolled over and got to his feet, stretching before jumping slightly as the door to the room swung open, a flash of red hiding behind him. " Zane?" he asked softly. " Is that you?"

Zane nodded softly, his hair neatly trimmed so it no longer fell over his face. " Yeah..."

Ark knelt down to the child screamer's level. " _What's going on? What's with all the noise outside?_"

Zane wiped his nose, sniffling. " That guy in the suit... he's fighting with some of the others."

" Not surprised..." Ark sighed, picking Zane up and going to see what all the fuss was over.

Outside the room was a warzone, Nick and Louis were in a heated argument despite the frigid feeling of the room. Setting Zane down, he made a faint noise as he listened in on the conversation.

" I'm not insulting Coach's plan, I'm pointing out a flaw in it, there's a difference." Nick said slowly, Louis sighing and throwing his hands in the air. " There's no pleasing you, is there?"

" Listen here, Louie-" Nick began, Louis interrupting him. " Louis." a swift roll of the eyes followed as the con-artist continued " LEW-is. All I'm saying is that the south is a dangerous as shit place, a sightseeing tour downriver isn't the best of ideas. Plus, we don't know how large the boat in question is, not like everyone living in this house right now can fit on it like some crappy pleasure tour."

" Well, where do you suggest we go then, the military?" Louis sighed, slowly losing his patience with Nick.

" Hell no, do you want to get shot?" Nick asked. " Because I'm sure grease-ball over there can tell you, it hurts."

" Wanna know how it feels too, Suit?" Francis growled from his seat, giving Nick the bird. " Because I can arrange that for you real fast."

" I'd rather not have to treat any more injuries!" Chad injected into the argument, Nick continuing to explain to Louis why he felt that Coach's idea was a bad one, the technician subtly hinting that Nick should fall onto a Boomer while continuing his rebuttal. Ark sighed faintly and moved away, picking Zane up, not interested in hearing the argument anymore.

" Are they always like this?" Zane asked, looking up at Ark, the Hunter nodding slowly.

_" At least Nick is... he's madder than a Tank with a papercut, and has a tongue sharper than a Shooter's spines. If his feet could move as fast as his mouth, he'd have already reached the west coast by now."_

Zane giggled softly, licking his lips while looking around. _"Hey Ark? How come you left us behind?"_

" _I didn't want the survivors to get hurt for me trying to find out who I was." _Ark explained, Zane shaking his head.

" _Why did you leave US behind?" _the child said, referring to him and Zephyr. Ark stopped walking for a moment, trying to find the answer. " _… Because I didn't want you hurt either. I didn't want anyone to get hurt while I was looking for clues about myself. At the time, we also knew nothing about the infected of the south either... so it wouldn't have been safe to bring you two along..."_

" _Because we're a woman and child, right?" _Zephyr came up behind him, startling Ark. " _Bury that chivalry somewhere else, I'm not a weak person, and neither is Zane. Granted, you were thinking for our safety when you left us behind with the survivors, but you weren't thinking about your own. What would you have done if the south had proved to be too much for you? None of us would have been there to help you, you're lucky that Sion and Chad tagged along."_

Ark hung his head guiltily. " _Okay..." _he gently set Zane down on the floor, standing up again to look at Zephyr, who let out a faint noise. " _Have you had any luck with finding out who you were?" _She asked softly, the Hunter shaking his head sadly. " _No... hardly any clues since I came out here... I almost feel as if I came out here for nothing."_

Zephyr sighed and gave him the same picture she had showed Sion, having retrieved it from him. " _Does this look like anything to you?" _She asked, tilting her head softly.

Ark sat staring at the photo for a full minute, searching the hazy part of mind for anything, even a small fragment of a memory. "... piercing. The older person in this picture had a piercing. Someone... I can't remember... told him to get rid of it, it was just in the way. He just stuck his tongue out and laughed... the stud in his tongue glinting in the sunlight, blinding me."

" Not much... but something." Zephyr sighed. " I think the man who gave us this picture might know something about you..." she said. " Called himself Anthony, but I think it was a false name."

" Where?!" Ark barked at her, scaring her slightly, the Witch staring at him with wide eyes. " Where did you meet him?!"

" Town outskirts..." Zephyr answered simply. " But Zoey would know more, she was the one who actually talked to him."

Ark nodded eagerly, feeling as if he finally had a lead on who he was. Moving forward, he dashed about the house, looking for Zoey, screeching to a halt when he saw Zoey and Ellis talking, the former changing the latter's bedding. Swallowing nervously, he walked forward, clearing his throat to make his presence known. When Zoey looked up at him, he made a quick noise. " Where meet Anthony...?" he garbled, mentally slapping himself.

Zoey thought on it. " Close to where the downed a plane was...look, Ark, can we talk later? Matthew ran around declaring he was going to do laundry, and we all need to get stuff cleaned, So I gotta fold up the sheets and whatnot and gather the remaining clothes about."

Ark closed his mouth slowly, nodding meekly and leaving, hearing Ellis start up some idle chatter as soon as he was gone from view, growling slightly and punching a wall, his sore knuckles a testament to his current anger.

" I'd appreciate it if you didn't make holes in my wall, thank you." Desert said patiently, holding a basket with canned goods in it, Colt standing behind him meekly, holding another basket. Ark looked at him with an unreadable expression, sighing and leaving, the older man tilting his head with a curious noise before going to find the source of Ark's strange mood.

Gazing into the "recovery" room, he saw Ellis animatedly telling Zoey another story, the girl smiling widely as she listened, slightly doubting the adventures of Keith but still interested. Desert let out a disapproving hum, it seemed as if the two were bonding well, but Zoey hadn't really sat down and talked to Ark since their reunion, nearly all her time was spent tending to others or listening to Ellis. " No wonder he feels so alone..."

Leaning back, he saw Ark running out the door, sighing deeply and looking at Colt. " Colt._ Follow._"

–

Ark dashed through the town, eyes nervously darting back and forth as he looked for someone, anyone who could tell him who he was. He was a little scared, not sure if he wanted to know who he once was. Was he someone the current him could respect? Or did the infection improve his personality? Shaking the thoughts from his mind, he slowed to a stop when he heard the faint twangs of a guitar, looking around while catching his breath, tilting his head curiously as he saw someone sitting on the roof of the nearby house.

" Sup, man. You ain't supposed to be interrupting the concert before it starts." a wild-haired youth said, setting the guitar down. " I don't see a backstage pass, so I'm afraid I'm gonna have to call security on you." he said, a smirk crossing his face before he threw a bile bomb at the clearing Ark was in.

Ark reeled and covered his nose as the smell permeated the area, common infected soon swarming the place, searching for whatever was covered in bile, the Hunter leaping onto the roof, letting them fight below for no good reason. " Killer skills, man. Shame you're not on the winning team." the youth said, lazily picking up his guitar. "Those survivors aren't good for much except being snacks, you shouldn't have to lower yourself to being their pet."

" _I am NOT their pet, I'm their-_" Ark began, a sharp note from the guitar cutting him off.

" I know, they're your friends, right?" the youth said. " Bullshit. All they'll do is use you. Keep you around as long as you keep wagging your tail and playing cute, but the minute they see some sort of freedom, they'll cut your leash and lock you outside in the rain. Wake up, humans are nothing but food and fodder. We're the better, stronger species."

Ark let his jaw drop and a look of confusion cross his face. Better species? Weren't they all humans to begin with? " You're nuts." he finally said, shaking his head.

" And you're blind, what's your point?" the infected youth said. " The infected rule now, and humans only have two choices, join or die. Well, some will die anyways, that's to be expected. Maybe you might get lucky... that pretty girl with the red jacket might turn into one of us and eat the dumb one's brains or something. Then there'll be nothing stopping you from finally growing a pair and making a move on her."

Ark growled deeply, his claws digging into the roof as he lunged for the infected youth, his claws only slicing air as the guy danced away, standing from a distance, laughing. " Gotta move a little faster to keep up with a screamer, kid." he chuckled. " We're built to be evasive."

_" And annoying too."_ Ark retorted.

" Just stating the facts, bro. That older woman... she's got a nice ass, that one. Might be a fine woman in bed too. Fatty might end up as a boomer and one little dart to the side will fix the problem... and hopefully the dumb one will just die or something. He's too obnoxious to even be a lesser infected. The gambler though... dunno on what he would be, probably a bitchy and cranky Witch or something. I know their female, but he has enough moodswings to equal one. Must be something wrong with his hormones or something- missed again~" he sang, dodging out of the way while Ark lunged again. " That's the issue with Hunters, they really can't change their direction while leaping, so it's kind of easy to get out of the way... poor baby." he cooed, Ark rubbing his head from having hit a wall.

" I'm gonna shove that guitar up your ass and floss your teeth with the strings..." Ark grumbled, shaking his head and getting to his feet.

" Yup. You're definitely his kid all right." the infected cackled. " Cute until mad, and then your attitude's shitty."

Ark growled again, his anger subsiding slightly as Zephyr and Zane finally caught up with him, the Witch looking pissed because she had to mow through a horde to get to them, mud splattered all over their clothing. " Do you ever THINK?!" Zephyr barked at Ark, the Hunter whimpering softly. " You're lucky we decided to come out with you, or else you'd be in BIG trouble!"

Ark looked back at her, wondering how on earth he could be in a lot of trouble from just one screamer, faltering when he saw a Shooter at the edge of the roof, it's claws scraping the side as it tried to get up, growling angrily. Biting his lip, he moved away, yelping when his foot was dragged along the roof, a cord wrapped around it. " You sorry..." he growled, the Screamer giggling.

Reaching down, he tried to tug the cable loose, the thick cord as tough as a Smoker's tongue, grimacing when it wouldn't come loose. Below, Zephyr was facing off with some of the residual horde that had been left behind by the bile bomb, Zane leaping off her shoulders onto the roof to help Ark get free of the cable. Scampering across the rooftop, he grabbed the cable and started tugging on it, little claws trying to tear it off.

Satisfied with the level of chaos he managed to create, the Screamer made a move to leap off the roof, screeching when he was dragged down by a clawed hand, Colt pulling him down with his good arm, growling furiously. " The hell, the mutt comes to help out too?!" he barked, kicking Colt in the face, the young Shooter's grip firm. " Let GO, asshole! I have no time for a lapdog like you!"

" Buying time." Colt said simply as a large hand slammed on the Screamer's head, long claws hovering dangerously over the Screamer's eyes. The young shooter released the Screamer and dropped off the roof as the stranger tossed the screamer onto another roof, the tiles cracking underneath the screamer's weight, a pained squeal escaping him. Rolling over, he narrowly dodged the stranger pouncing at him, scrabbling to get to his feet and jump to another roof, Zane freeing Ark as the two looked at the stranger.

" Alexander..." the screamer breathed, his usual punk styled clothing all torn up and his hair a mess from the sudden attack.

The stranger stood up to his full height, removing his hood and gently shaking his head free of the lint on his hair. " That's my name. Don't wear it out." he said, blue eyes shining as his lips curled into a dangerous grin, blood caking his sharp teeth. His mouse-brown hair hadn't seen a brush in weeks and the same could be said for his face, his scraggly look giving Ark an uneasy feeling. At the same time though, a part of him felt relieved, as if he had been waiting for this person for a long time.

Alexander took a brief minute to scan the area, a sharp click escaping him. " Bad boy, you've been rather busy since I left." he chastised the screamer, the teen getting up and growling, wiping away some of the blood trickling down his face from Alexander's claws.

" Yeah, well fuck you too." he growled. " This time though, I brought backup."

Alexander's face cracked into a smile. " You mean the big pincushion, right?" he gestured with his thumb at a fresh corpse. " Handled that while I asked the little shooter to stall you." deep gashes adorned the dead shooter's face and chest, it's throat torn out, a small river of blood trickling the side of Alexander's mouth. " So, what was that about some backup?" he grinned.

" You're a friggen monster!" the screamer shrieked, falling on his rear, clearly surprised at how fast Alexander had managed to kill the hulking infected. Turning, he tried to escape, startled to see Colt there, clawing at Colt's face. " Out of my way!" he shrieked, screaming right in Colt's ear, stunning him and causing the Shooter to tumble off the roof, a cry from below suggesting that he landed on Zephyr. Alexander hesitated a moment, almost as if mentally counting to three before chasing after the screamer, coiling his legs at the edge of the roof and leaping, landing on the roof and giving chase, remaining on two feet as he made his way across the damaged roof, the Screamer scrambling across on all fours as Ark leapt down from the roof to help Colt and Zephyr. Though he didn't trust the stranger who had just arrived, rescuing his family was top priority. He would just have to trust Alexander to chase the screamer away for now, whistling for Zane to come to him.

When the little screamer came down from the roof, landing on Ark's back, he climbed down and started checking Colt over, knowing that the scream most likely stunned him for a few minutes, rolling the young shooter's head over slightly and shaking him, trying to get him back up as Zephyr crawled out from under him, grumbling something about castrating a punk. Once she was free, she helped Colt to his feet, watching Alexander play with the screamer, very much like how a cat plays with its food before killing it. " That's the guy we saw before, the one who called himself 'anthony' and gave us the photo!" she told Ark, the hunter turning back to watch the bigger Hunter.

" Is that my father?" he wondered to himself, shaking the thoughts from his head and motioning for Zephyr to take Colt home. " Not a chance in hell." Zephyr retorted, letting Colt rest against the side of the building. " I didn't follow you all the way out here for you to shove me off and tell me to go home." she hissed, grabbing his collar with her curled fist. " Either you come with us, or we stay with you here." Her tone left little room for any arguments, Ark sighing and reluctantly agreeing to help keep them safe.

As the chase continued on, Alexander began to grow increasingly bored, increasing his speed to catch the screamer. The thing that always annoyed him about screamers was the running habit, but if you were expecting it, it was easier to close the distance and make the kill. Crouching down, he leapt into the air and landed on the screamer, taking satisfaction in the cracking noise he heard, looking at how the punk's arm was twinging, bringing his hand up and clawing the punk's face, blood immediately gushing out of the wounds inflicted, one eye closed up as well. Before he could strike the last blow though, a bullet snaked by his cheek, the large Hunter drawing back and looking around, eyes narrowed. Another bullet hit the tilework beside him and he got off the teen, moving to the other side of the roof for safety, spotting a woman standing near a motorcycle in the distance, the sniper rifle too large to mistake it from anything else. " Bitch packing heat." he grumbled, pulling his hood up over his face and disappearing into the trees, Ark following him.

With a pained groan, the screamer hauled himself off the roof, landing on the ground with a whine and getting up, stumbling away in the direction of the woman, getting on the bike with her and clinging to her as she drove off, Zephyr grinding her teeth in frustration. She had wanted to pursue the woman, but with Ark chasing Alexander and Colt in no real condition to fight, she had no choice but to let the two go. Slamming her hand against the wall, she looked at Zane. " C'mon, Zane. Let's get Colt home." she said softly.

" What about Ark?" Zane asked, his worried eyes scanning the treeline.

" He'll be okay. He knows when to turn tail and run." she said. " But for now, we're the ones in real danger, Colt can't fight for now, and I've got my hands full helping him. We should get back inside before anything real big starts coming our way." she helped Colt to his feet again, slowly helping him home, Zane following her.

–

" Wait, please!" Ark breathed, resting his hands on his knees, panting heavily. He had tried to keep up with the fierce pace of the larger hunter, but it wasn't working as well as he would have liked. Bracing himself against a tree, he was stunned to feel the grooves in it, looking at the tree, realizing the grooves were claw marks. No doubt a trail marking made by another Hunter, but the size pretty much confirmed it as Alexander's claws. Drawing his hand back, he dragged his claws against the soft bark, disappointed with how little a mark he left. Alexander was far larger and stronger than him, it was something to fear and admire at the same time, his efforts to find him renewed. " Alexander!" he called. " I want to talk to you!"

A rustling from nearby alerted him to Alexander's presence, the sharpened voice coming from behind a tree. " What do you want, kid." he said, his tone not inquisitive in the slightest. It was a plain and simple demand; Make it quick. Startled, Ark reached up and removed his hood, relieved at how his hair wasn't too messy from the hood. He made a mental note to get someone to cut his hair again as Alexander's eyes widened under his hood, the older Hunter coming closer. " Noah..." he said softly, a gentle tone entering his voice. Ark looked a bit confused, tilting his head slowly to look at Alexander, shaking his head.

" Sorry... can't remember..." he said sadly, hanging his head. " I was hoping you could tell me who I am." he lifted his head, staring into Alexander's eyes, his own eyes full of emotions. Worry about knowing the truth, concern about the others, sadness at being unable to remember, it all showed on his face as Alexander's expression remained unreadable. " Who am I, Alexander? Please tell me." he finished, claws flexing nervously.

Alexander lifted his head slightly. " Your name... is Noah." he turned as he saw the nearby bushes rustle, a few commons fighting nearby. " Come on, let's go to the twins' house. I'll talk there." he finished, walking off in the direction of the plantation homes.

–

End chapter 41

... wow, 1000 reviews! To be honest, I never thought it would get this far. Ark certainly has grown up, hasn't he? He's still on his tumblr waiting for people to come talk to him, and Sion, Desert, Matthew, and Alexander are there as well if you know how to look. If there are any errors in the story, please bear with them, the computer I have right now is really funny, it likes putting everything in italic when I type. Anyways, another hurdle cleared, next chapter should be here very soon!

Ciao for now!


	42. Past

Chapter 42: Past

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead 1 or 2

* * *

The mood in the household was quiet as Ark slowly peeked his head back in, a little afraid of how everyone was going to react to his large companion, wincing with a dejected sigh as Alexander more or less kicked the door open, not caring in the slightest about stealth. " Yo, idiot twins! Where the hell are your pepper-munching asses? I swear, come all the way out into buttfuck, egypt and still can't get a decent reception when I come by-" he barked, Desert glaring at him from down the hall.

" I can hear you just fine, Alexander. Stop yelling, we have injured people here." he said with a warning tone. " Settle down or I will make you settle down."

" Kinky." Alexander replied, ducking as a can of string beans flew at him. Smoothing out his sweatshirt slightly, he looked back at Ark before glancing back at Desert. " Corniness aside, got a place where we can talk briefly?"

Desert set down the matching can of string beans, gesturing upstairs. " On the balcony, just close the door." As Alexander marched past him with Ark in tow, Desert turned to watch them. " Make sure no one is sleeping there first!"

" Yeah, yeah." Alexander waved one arm, opening the door to the balcony. " Move it, girls." he hissed at Nick, who was sitting out there with Ellis talking his ear off, both men giving him a sharp look. " I need to talk with junior here, so take your party somewhere else."

Ark gave both men an apologetic look, Ellis dragging Nick away to continue talking, the con-artist's fists clenched tightly and his knuckles white as they left. Alexander closed the balcony door behind them, looking back at Ark with a piercing glance. " So. Where to begin, huh?" he said in a more relaxed tone. " Well, I told you your name, so that's a start... fuck it, might as well just play twenty questions. Go on, kid, ask away."

" Are you actually my dad?" Ark blurted out, feeling very stupid for doing so. Then again, he had been doing a lot of stupid things lately.

Alexander lifted an eyebrow. " Straight and to the point. Yeah, I'm your legal guardian before the world went to hell, if you need further proof, just look at the genetics." a straight answer, no hint of a lie.

Ark racked his brain trying to think of something else to ask him. " You said my name was Noah, right? Where did we live before all this? What was I like before all of this?" it was a question that had burned at his mind for weeks, never leaving his mind until he fell asleep at night.

" Philadelphia." Alexander replied. " We moved there from California, where you were born. I felt like the big city was a little too much on a infant."

" And my mother...?" Ark asked hesitatingly.

" Gone for all I know. I raised you by myself." Alexander replied, a flicker of disgust briefly passing by his face. Ark was temporarily relieved that whatever the infection had done to his head, it hadn't kept him from ending up with a bad attitude like Alexander. He had seen the look that overcame his usual mask of anger, but decided now wasn't the best time to be pestering for answers. " What was I like? You didn't answer that one."

Alexander massaged his forehead, already feeling the headache coming on. " You were a college student when this happened. Studying electronics, I think. Really handy with wires more than anything. We... had a falling out a few days before the infection." he admitted with a soft noise.

Realizing that this was very uncomfortable for Alexander to talk about, Ark lowered his voice softly. " What happened? What did I say?"

" The news was going on about a strange virus that was spreading like wildfire throughout the state. I was adamant about making you stay home, stay out of school until it passed, but you wanted to go to class and stay in the dorms. We fought about stupid things like getting a job and girlfriend, and then you took the car keys and headed off for school regardless of what I had said. I thought that in a few hours, you'd calm down and come back home. Later that day, the infection hit our area fully, and I set out to find you." Alexander looked at his clawed hands, flexing them slightly. " Obviously... I didn't have that much luck." he looked meek and reclusive, a complete 180 of the aggressive man he had seen before, laughing in the face of death. It wasn't clear in his voice, but his stance said it all; he was sorry they had fought and glad that he found his son alive.

Ark made a noise. " I'm sorry we fough-" Alexander held up his hand, shaking his head.

" Don't. You're just saying it because you feel bad for me. You're Ark now, not Noah. Maybe someday, you'll remember being him, but for now, you're not him. You don't have to try an give me a half-assed apology for something you didn't do." he said. " Now... is there anything else you want to know?"

" What I want to know is why your co-worker keeps attacking US." Desert said, standing in the doorway. Alexander snarled at him, obviously upset that the other male had ruined a moment between father and son, but Desert wouldn't budge. " Lives are at stake here, Alexander. People have been killed in camps thanks to this man's rampage, and you seem to be at the center of it. Now talk, or I'll drag it out of your bleeding lips."

" You'd love that, wouldn't you, Shooter." Alexander sneered. " You may behave nice, but you're just as violent as your pincushion counterparts." he drew back when Desert held up his hand, his claws clearly visible as well as a few spines. " Fine, fine, asshole." he grumbled, leaning against the railing.

" I killed his wife, that's all there is to the rampage." he said after a moment. When both Ark and Desert gave him a look, he continued. " She was turning, becoming a Witch and a nasty one at that. He was one of those men who would desperately cling to even the smallest hope that his wife would be okay, and continued to "care" for her. She got out one night, and terrorized the block where we lived. I had been in the workings of getting our second car running properly so I could go after my son, and she came in and attacked me and a friend I had helping me. She tore open our garage door like it was nothing and mowed my friend down without so much as a hint of regret. There was no one inside that woman anymore, just a beast that had been startled and wouldn't calm down without a blood sacrifice. In his last act, my friend had bought me enough time to reach the shotgun in the passenger's seat and kill her after she attacked me next. I was too late to save him, all I could do was sit and watch the light fade from his eyes. I didn't even have enough time to bury him properly."

He exhaled deeply. " In all the commotion, I didn't realize she had bitten me, I was too adrenaline pumped to even realize some of the blood on me was my own, but then he came in. Obviously, a fellow coworker covered in blood while holding a shotgun standing over your dead wife is not well received. Even though she had been a nightmare, killed well over 7 people that night, he had somehow developed the mentality that as long as he kept her safe, she would come back to him someday. Personally, I think he cracked. Still, it's been his driving force behind chasing after me. At first, he was just after what he believed was the man who murdered his wife, and then after I had fully turned, he allowed himself to believe that he was hunting down a monster instead of a murderer. Why he's attacking other people, I have no idea, I never did know what went on in that crazy man's head. Honest."

" What about the woman and the screamer?" Desert asked.

" The screamer is some idealistic kid he picked up somewhere. Thinks that Humans are inferior to infected, and seems duty bound to prove it." Alexander shrugged. " Little punk fears me though. Guess that scar I gave him on his leg was enough to remind him that Screamers aren't high on the totem pole of infected."

" The woman?" Ark asked, not liking the tension in the room.

" A scientist, that's all I know." Alexander said. " She's on board with tweedle-dee and tweedle-dumbfuck so she can gather information on the infection. Got a nasty habit of interfering with any sort of operations going on." he scratched his head. " It's all I got, you should ask Ethan for more details, I heard his wife was in the scientist business for a really long time."

" Where do you intend to go from here?" Desert asked. " You being here right now puts our home at risk for attack, and we still have injured here."

" Don't get your man-panties in a knot." Alexander shot back. " As soon as I'm rested, I'm taking my son and heading for home."

* * *

Ark squeaked, staring at Alexander with wide eyes. Going home? Zoey and the others still needed his help... but then again, they could probably get along fine without him... he felt genuinely conflicted, moving away to let the adults talk, going back inside to find a place to sit down and gather his thoughts. Collapsing on a couch, he sighed as he slowly pulled his legs to his chest, resting his head on his knees. He let out a startled noise as he felt a warm hug being given to him suddenly, glancing up at Zephyr, who was smiling softly.

" Hey there, Ark. Need someone to talk to?" she asked softly, seeing his stunned face. " You look like someone's hit you in the nuts with a bowling ball." When Ark laughed at that, she chuckled softly herself, bringing one hand up to run through his hair gently, being careful of her claws. " So... what did we miss in the world today?" she asked, sitting beside him on the couch. She had seen part of the confrontation on the balcony, and was genuinely curious about what was going on. Since they had left them at the forest encampment, Zephyr had been very worried about how Sion and Ark were doing, mainly because she knew they often had a hard time blending in with people.

Ark sighed and pushed some of his hair out of his face, noting it was a bit longer than he would have liked. _" You heard most of it, right?" _he exhaled slowly. " _Alexander wants to take me back home."_

Zephyr snorted. " Are you going?" she asked, cocking her head slightly. " You're your own person, you know. You can say no."

" _Well, I just was wondering... am I really helpful here at all?" _Ark asked, yelping when Zephyr beat him over the head with her claws, dragging him outside kicking and yowling.

" Like hell you're going to start that "woe is me, I'm totally useless I should just disappear" shit on me." Zephyr growled, pointing one sharp claw at him when she got him outside. " The Hunter I met refused to back down from any challenge no matter how stupid it was to try, and he never ever thought anything he did was useless. Look at you! What the hell happened in between the camps to make you feel so pathetic about yourself?!"

Ark held his head upright instead of hanging it, staring at her with wide eyes, blinking slowly. " I... I wasn't much help." he admitted. " I tried, but they had to help me more than I helped them-" he shook slightly when Zephyr folded her arms, taking in a deep breath.

" Ark." she said softly. " That's your name, isn't it? Not Noah. Ark has done many things for all of us. Granted, more than half of us here think that you're a gigantic idiot who's love of hamburgers is gonna end up with us having to use a crane to lift him by mid january..."

" Ouch." Ark blankly injected.

" But Ark's also faced down numerous monsters bigger than him just to help someone he cared about." Zephyr continued on. " Even if it didn't work, it's the act that was so important." she smiled and sat in front of him. " People save each other all the time, it's natural. This time though, they had to save you." she gently poked his nose with her pinky claw. " Nothing to be ashamed of."

" Yeah... but Zoey doesn't seem to want to talk to me..." Ark said, feeling like he was losing the war here. " Everytime I want to talk to her, she's with Ellis or is busy."

Zephyr sighed, covering her face. " Yeah, a little something called lack of common sense keeps getting in the way here... She's still mad at you for bailing on the group when they reached the encampment. She tore that place apart looking for you, certain you had gotten into some real danger." when Ark gave her a surprised look, she continued. " Think of it this way. If Sion went somewhere and got seriously hurt but he didn't tell you where he went because he didn't want you involved, you'd be pissed because you two are such good friends, wouldn't you?" when Ark nodded, she gestured back at the house. " Well, what do you think you did to her?"

Ark immediately looked sheepish, getting up to go talk to her, mumbling a hasty thank you to the Witch, disappearing back inside as Zephyr sat there. After a few minutes, she sighed, getting up and looking into the bushes with a smirk. " Your best friend isn't the brightest bulb on the tree, as usual." she smiled. " But that's what all of us like about him, eh, Sion?" she said, going over to sit with the Smoker who was resting underneath one of the large trees in the yard, settling beside him, Zane already curled up on Sion's lap, sleeping softly. Once she was settled, she rested her head against Sion's shoulder, enjoying the cool breeze floating by, her mind already painting another picture on her mindscape.

* * *

"I'm so sorry!" Ark immediately begged upon entering the room, head bowed in what was by every sense of the word an apologetic gesture. " I'm sorry that I left you guys and didn't tell anyone anything, making you worry." he hung his head. " I should have at least said something."

Zoey was standing there, giving him a critical look, listening to his apology with a faint noise, going over and placing one hand on Ark's shoulder. " You had me worried, you know. I thought something bad had happened to you." she said, patting his shoulder gently. " Considering all the time we spent together, I figured you'd at least say goodbye."

" It was hard." Ark hunched his shoulders, sitting on the floor cross-legged. " I... wasn't thinking then. Don't think I'm thinking now either... I'm not good at trying to keep up with everything."

" Yeah, you're simple." Zoey said softly. " Kind of like Ellis. You two are a lot alike, you know." she smiled at him. " Both of you believe things will turn out right in the end, as long as we all stick together."

Ark nodded softly, Zoey then crossing her arms. " This is for leaving without a word." she said, smacking him upside the head, kneeling down and hugging him next. " And this is me saying 'Welcome back.' " She held the embrace for a full minute before gently breaking away and ruffling his hair. " Glad you're safe, Ark."

" I'm happy everyone else is okay too." Ark replied. " Bill and Francis still going at it?"

" You have no idea." she chuckled, messing with her ponytail. " Louis is still the peacemaker as always, but I half expect the two to die from 'friendly' fire long before any infected bring them down."

" Sounds about right." Ark sighed with a smile on his face, shaking his head. " Those two are something else." On cue, he heard a curse from outside, shaking his head. "Sounds like they're arguing with Nick."

Zoey let out a sigh, her expression blank. " That's been going on all day, really. Everyone's trying to figure out what to do next, and he's been shooting down ideas and plans left and right."

" Well Nick's jus' tryin' to see every angle, y'know?" Ellis piped up from his bed. " Saved our hides a few times. I can tell you about them if y' want?" he said, sitting upright.

" Not right now, Ellis." Zoey said softly, motioning for him to lie back down. " Get some rest, your family won't go anywhere without making sure that you're well first."

" Aw, okay." Ellis slunk back under the covers, Zoey shrugging and turning back to Ark. " Nick aside... I'm really wondering where we can go from here. Even if we leave you guys, that's still 9 people to look after if we add Chad to the mix. That's a lot of people to keep track of. For now, everyone seems to be sticking to groups of four, but a group of 8 would have more firepower, with added risk."

She walked over to the other side of the room, gesturing out the window. " Plus, there seems to be the ongoing debate of WHERE to go. Coach is insisting that we go to New Orleans, to get evac'd, but the last few evacs... well, it never works out for us. Bill's insisting on heading out to the islands, isolate ourselves from the infected, but we couldn't do that with a large group of people unless we found an island resort or something." she sighed again as she flopped down on the empty bed on the other side of Ellis. " I'd love for all of us to stay together, but it's a pipedream at this point."

Chuckling softly, she rolled over to look at Ark. " Right about now is when I would suggest to my roommate to put on a zombie flick and start the popcorn, we're leaving reality. Now though... I'd give anything to be sitting back in that dark room, snacks in hand and watching cheesy zombie attacks through the screen instead of sitting in a crowded room, waiting for them to come through the door."

"S' not much, but I can do that, at least." Matthew poked his head through the door, the two looking over at him. The male spitter had been listening in from the hallway and was trying to make the somber mood of the house a little lighter. " Watchin' movies I mean. We've still got power to th' house, I can fix you up with a movie if you jus' want t' relax. No one's goin' anywhere for a few hours anyway, might as well enjoy it. Whaddaya say?"

Sensing opportunity knocking, Ark jumped at the offer. " Zoey, want to watch with me?" he asked. " Haven't seen one before, it might be fun!"

Zoey laughed. " Look in the mirror, Ark. There's your zombie flick, you look like a mess. But..." she got up off the bed. " I think that'll be nice. It's a date, okay? Meet me in the living room in an hour, I've got to try and see if the shower works, I am in desperate need of a bath." she walked out of the room, Matthew watching her before cocking an eyebrow at Ark, an amused smile on his face.

" Good luck, Ark!" he said, giving the Hunter a cheerful smile. " Take the time to kick back and relax. Try not to shoot the screen, okay? Takes too long to find a working television around here." he walked off, Ellis giving Ark a slow look before yawning and rolling back over to get some sleep, the Hunter being left alone with his thoughts.

Then realization hit him.

" _MATTHEW, DID YOU JUST SET ME UP ON A DATE?!"_

* * *

End Chapter 42: Past

Ah ha ha nothing like movie night to ease your nerves, eh? In my case, it happens to be my muse, I love going to the movie theaters and watching films, it fills my head with new ideas often. I half loved/hated this chapter, Alexander is fun to write since he's such an asshole at times. As for the next chapter... well, I hope I can make it as fun-filled as possible!

Ciao!


	43. Present

Chapter 43: Present

Disclaimer: I do not own Left 4 Dead 1 or 2.

* * *

" _I'd kick that Spitter's ass if he couldn't melt my face off with a single attack." _Ark grumbled as he sat next to Zephyr, who brushing his hair lightly and trying to trim the ends. " _I can't believe he tricked me that easily..."_

" _To be fair Ark, you are kind of easy to fool." _Zephyr told him, fussing with his hair. _"Now hold still, or I'm liable to make a mistake. I'm supposed to be an art student, not a beautician."_ she angled the scissors slowly, trimming the back of his hair to make it neater before moving onto the front, trimming the bangs back. " _Your hair is a mess, did you ever do anything with it? Handy invention; a comb. Invest in one."_

Ark looked sheepish at the comment, rolling his shoulders. "_Well, we were often too busy to really do anything hair wise. Nick would just slick his hair back and Rochelle would always keep it tied up. Coach didn't need to do anything, and Ellis always just put his hat on over his head, regardless of how it looked. Sion and Chad didn't bother to do much either."_

" _Well, I'm done for now." _she let out a sigh, setting down the scissors. " _Just make sure to wash it so it will look even better."_

" _Thanks, you're an angel." _Ark purred, getting up to do just that, bouncing out of the room. Zephyr watched him go for a moment before turning over to Sion, who was relaxing on a nearby chair. " You want a haircut too, while I'm in the mood?" she asked.

" No thanks, your hands are probably aching from having to hold the scissors like that." Sion said, gesturing to her hands. " I'd rather you rest them, we're all going to need to be at our best when we call that boat."

" I haven't bothered to ask Ark yet, but what are you going to do about everyone?" Zephyr asked, putting the scissors away in a drawer. " That boat can't fit everyone, unless we intend it to sink or something. At best, you could fit maybe 7 people on board. If you count the new group, we'd only be able to fit one group on, and 3 infected. Assuming Desert, Matthew and Alexander are not leaving the area, that still leaves me, Ark, you, Zane and Colt. None of the survivor groups will split up, nor will they allow themselves to travel with the other group, meaning mixing and matching is not going to work either."

She sat down on the couch with a sigh. " Colt wants to find Solaris, which means he wants to head out as soon as possible, while Alexander wants to take Ark home. Me, I just want to find a safe place for Zane, and you've more or less dedicated yourself to making sure Chad stays safe. Everyone's spread too thinly, and there's not enough transportation to go around."

Sion leaned forward on the couch. " All of it really depends on the survivors plans as well as Alexander. If the "north" survivors want to head somewhere else, then Bill is going to chart a route he believes is best, the others be damned. The "South" survivors are intending to head to New Orleans no matter what, it would be a better option to let them take the boat, it's headed where they want to be. The question is, who's following who. Ark isn't sure of which group he wants to help right now, and Alexander's not making it any easier on him either."

He glanced over at her. " Colt will go his own way, regardless of who follows him or not, which may or may not be a bad thing. Chad will most likely tag along with the southern survivors, they've already injured themselves far more times in a few days than the other group has in a week. As for you and Zane..." He glanced outside, where Desert was working on a chair's weak leg. " I'd really love it if you two could stay here." When Zephyr gave him a stunned look, he continued on. " Once all the survivors leave the area along with Alexander, there won't be any reason for someone to attack this place. Desert and Matthew regularly perform infected sweeps as well as supply runs. You and Zane would be able to stay here and live peacefully, the way you were before the lab separated you two."

Turning, he gazed outside. " I'll come back here once I'm certain the survivors are safe... and then we can just wait out the rest of this horrid mess. After all, it's all we can do as infected... wait for someone to make a cure. Hell, if I'm lucky, we can even bring Ark back here as well, I'd miss that crazy Hunter."

Zephyr glanced at him, cocking her head slowly. " Well, you sure do know how to drive a hard bargain." She smiled gently. " I'll ask Desert and see what he thinks, but you have to promise that you'll come back, since you're so adamant about making me stay out of danger."

" Call me a forgotten gentleman?" Sion chuckled softly. " I'll just have a hard time coping if either you or Zane were to get hurt, and so would Ark."

" Speaking of which... wanna watch in on his date?" Zephyr asked with a malicious grin. "I'd love to see how he handles his first date."

" You're terrible." Sion laughed. " … though if we hurry, we might catch something good."

" You're calling me terrible?" Zephyr laughed as the two got up and headed out the door.

* * *

" You two are terrible." Matthew said, the male Spitter blocking the door to the room with the television, both the Smoker and Witch looking sheepish at having been caught so easily.

" You're not so pure yourself, setting them up on a date." Sion retorted weakly, Matthew giving him a curious look.

" Y'all are the ones callin' it a date. M' calling it a relaxin' event." he told them. Y' the ones making a big t'-do about it."

" Usually when two people share in an activity together, it's called a date." Zephyr offered softly, Matthew snorting and crossing his arms.

" Well, y' two can surely find somethin' t' do with yourselves for a few hours, yes?" he said, his tone suggesting that the topic was no longer up for discussion.

Sion and Zephyr both looked disappointed and headed off, Matthew watching the hustle and bustle of the others. Coach and Bill were sitting at a coffee table, a giant map laid out between them, and mugs of coffee that were rapidly going cold due to being ignored. Both men were analyzing the map over and over, trying to work out a plan that would suit both parties, and from the amount of cigarette butts resting in the ashtray, they weren't having that much luck with it. Coach seemed determined to head south to get evacuated, while Bill entertained the idea of heading just far enough south to commandeer a boat of their own to use for travel.

Nick was lounging in a chair, his head tucked against the cushions, eyes closed in what looked like an attempt at sleep, if it wasn't for Zane sitting there pestering him. The little Screamer was asking him non-stop questions that ranged from the stupid to the sad, like what color Nick's eyes were in the dark and whether or not he liked salted peanuts, the man grumbling weakly. Ellis came to his rescue and scooped up the small boy, talking to him in soft tones while heading back to his room to rest some more. Matthew couldn't put his finger on it, but the young man seemed upset for some reason or another.

" He likes that young woman, Zoey." Desert informed him, coming up behind his twin. " Obviously, a young man in love doesn't want to see his crush hanging out with other males." he chuckled softly. " As for Ark... well, I'm not sure what his feelings are. I don't know if he likes her, or if it is simply friendship."

Matthew leaned back. " Well, I'm sure we'll get to see in a while, yes? But enough about the land o' love, what's the news out there?"

" Alexander intends to head home soon, and he's rather adamant about taking his son with him, regardless of what Ark thinks. I did however, talk him into taking Colt by the military encampment, which is on the way. I recently talked with Ethan, who said he is heading North with his family, he feels as if the epicenter zones are safer to be in right now." Desert reported. " As for the survivors, it seems to be an ongoing battle of either the islands or New Orleans."

" So I've heard..." Matthew glanced at the ceiling. " Where do you think the best place t' go would be?"

" New Orleans would be the best if there wasn't the military presence. I have no idea what they plan to do to the area once they're done evacuating. Not to mention, I've heard many people who are un-infected are being shot simply because they're carriers." Desert replied. " Ark and his friends wouldn't stand a chance of fooling the guards there, they'd have to leave the survivors behind and escape on their own."

" The survivors will be killed too if they're carriers." Matthew sighed. " Honestly, why are humans so dumb? Ahh, so the Islands are better options?"

" Not by much." Desert said, shaking his head. " Honestly, they'd all be better off finding a place that's easily defensible and stocking it with plenty of supplies and waiting it out. Common infected die of random causes all the time, the number dwindles each day. The special infected would live longer, but even they would dwindle in number without kills and being hunted by humans."

The male spitter stretched out, yawning faintly as he looked at the flickering lightbulb. " What do you think of the others? Are they worth making it to safety?"

Desert hid a small chuckle. " All of the survivors have their own unique qualities... they've come too far to die now. Now, if some of them become better team players, than that would help in the long run." he said, not so subtly referring to a few people.

"... Think Virgil's gonna go by the ol' Sugar Mill route?" Matthew asked, changing the subject. " You know what that place is like now..."

" Witch central." Desert agreed. " But if he stocked up on gas, he should sail past it just fine..." he tensed up a second, tilting his head before going to the window and looking outside. Matthew curiously followed, staring out at the empty lawn. " Smell somethin'?" he asked his twin.

" Just the air... smells like rain." Desert replied. " Seems like a storm's coming through."

" We'll be fine, our house never gets flooded during the rains, even the bad ones!" Matthew reassured his brother, unable to keep the worry out of his voice. With the infection going around now, any change in the weather was a bad thing... hell, even the sun setting was a bad thing. He couldn't remember the last time he had a full night's sleep thanks to the green flu. " When they leave, I'll go to the sugar mill." He said softly, leaning against the wall. " I'll wait a day or so, see if they drop by, then head home if they don't. Just to make sure they get there."

" You've grown fond of them, haven't you?" Desert asked, leaning right beside them.

" They remind me of us in our early days." Matthew said, looking out the window again and seeing Zane, now free of Ellis, pestering Louis in the yard. " Back when the most we worried about was whether or not we'd make it to the end of the month financially to see our friends again instead of worrying about seeing tomorrow. They make me feel like there's still hope out there."

" I see..." Desert heard some sounds in the living room, turning his head slightly. " Sounds like the movie's starting, or is about to. I'll leave you to your business, I've got patrol today." he walked off, seizing Sion who was trying to peek in, dragging the yelping Smoker away by his collar. " Since you seem so bored, you can help me." he said, Sion growing pale.

Matthew smiled and went to the door, peeking his head in to see how the two youngsters were doing, closing the door and sitting in front of it with a book afterward.

* * *

" Okay, let's vote..." Zoey said, holding up the small dvd collection inside the television room. Her hair was down at the moment, and smelled faintly of blueberries, the young woman having taken the time to blow-dry it in the shower room, much to the annoyance of Francis, who was waiting his turn for the shower. Ark was all cleaned up as well, picking at the strands of his hair lightly, wondering what the options were. " We have either the Night of the Living Dead, Giant Gila Monster, or The Creature that Challenged the World."

" That's it?" Ark asked, creeping to the edge of the couch.

" Nah, reached in and chose three at random." Zoey gestured to a box of DVDs sitting in the corner. " Any of them sound good?"

" I'd say... night of the living dead... but we could watch the window for a few hours for that." Ark replied honestly, Zoey chuckling.

" Okay, Zombies are a no-go. That leaves two unless you want to take a hand at picking." Zoey waved the two DVDs in front of him.

" Erm... Creature that Challenged the World." Ark finally chose, Zoey putting the DVD in the player and flopping down on the couch beside him, grabbing a bowl of popcorn. She offered it to him, ignoring the claws as they dug around in the kernels. " You washed your claws, right?" she asked, watching him shovel down a handful, taking his nods as a yes.

As the movie began, Ark soon regretted picking a horror movie with Zoey around. She seemed to know a lot about the older films, and had no trouble sharing the interesting trivia about them.

" This film was made in 1957, and the film was originally called The Jagged Edge." Zoey went on, popping some more kernels into her mouth. " Most of the underwater scenes were shot off the coast of Los Angeles, by Catalina Island, the really close shots though were all done in a tank. Would have been too hard to do out in the ocean. As for the creature's shells, I suspect that they were made out of a material close to crafting supplies, except way more water tolerant. The dummies that were "Blood-drained" were most likely rigged that way in-"

" _So much for a relaxing event." _Ark mumbled sleepily, more drowsy than anything. Trying to focus on what Zoey was saying as well as what was going on in the movie was a bit much on him, and before too long, the Hunter had his head resting on the couch, fast asleep. Zoey on the other hand, kept talking as if he was still listening.

She continued talking through a good deal of the film, failing to realize that Ark had fallen asleep, turning while the diver was being mauled on screen. " Ark?" she gently poked his face, earning nothing more than a snore, sighing softly. " Classy." she said with a chuckle. " But, typical Ark." she settled back by his side, grabbing his popcorn and eating, turning the volume down a little so she could enjoy the movie without waking him.

End Chapter 43: Present.

* * *

Exam time is hard on everyone, isn't it? Evidently college is no exception, even if it is just a trade school. Tests eat into my writing time like you wouldn't believe. Glad I finally got this chapter finished though, I bet some of you were wondering where I went. Things should pick up in the next chapter.

In the meantime, I have been coerced (Read as: forced) into joining a more social world.

Ciao for now!


End file.
